China's Western Frontier and Eurasia: The Politics of State and Region-Building

China has become a dominant power in Eurasian affairs, exercising significant political, economic, and ideational power. The Chinese Communist Party has sought to increase state capacity and control over its western frontier through state-building initiatives, including a region-building project in Eurasia. Garcia traces how domestic elite-led narratives about security and development generate state-building initiatives and region-building projects, promoted through narratives of Chinas engagement in Eurasia, non-interference norms, and appeals to mutual development.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 210 pages
Publication date: 31 May 2023
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

China has emerged as a dominant force in Eurasian affairs, exerting significant political, economic, and ideational power. Since the founding of the People's Republic, Chinese Communist Party leaders have aimed to enhance state capacity and exercise greater control over their western frontier through a series of state-building initiatives. While these initiatives have always incorporated an international component, the collapse of the Soviet Union, increasing globalization, and the party's concerns about terrorism, separatism, and extremism have led to a region-building project in Eurasia.

Garcia delves into how domestic elite-led narratives about security and development drive state-building initiatives and subsequently region-building projects. He also assesses how these projects are promoted through narratives of China's historical engagement in Eurasia, the promotion of non-interference norms, and appeals to mutual development. Furthermore, Garcia traces the construction of regions through formal and informal institutions and integrative infrastructure. By presenting three phases of Chinese domestic state-building and region-building from 1988 to the present, Garcia demonstrates how region-building projects have enabled China to increase state capacity, control, and development in its western frontier.

This book is highly recommended for scholars of China's international relations and development policy. It provides valuable insights into China's regional strategies, its interactions with other countries in the region, and the challenges and opportunities it faces in its pursuit of national development.

Weight: 354g
Dimension: 233 x 156 x 16 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780367694449