18 March 2015
Chinese Economic Diplomacy: New Initiatives
Executive Summary
On 19 December 2014, the prime ministers of China and Thailand signed in Bangkok, two memorandums of understanding that will have China construct two dual-track rail lines covering a combined 867 km (542 miles), and buy Thai rice and rubber, as well as other agricultural products. Within the week, the Thai prime minister travelled to Beijing to reaffirm the same agreements just signed. A year earlier, China and Thailand had announced a similar deal, with the Chinese prime minister making a pointed plea to the Thai parliament for legislative approval. That deal was voted down. The rest is history, only that China prevailed in the multinational competition to upgrade the rail system for Thailand.
Symbolism in this Sino-Thai economic cooperation project is profound. Thailand represents a make-or-break for translating the century-old concept of the Kunming-Singapore railway into reality. The idea was formally revived in 2006 when 18 Asian and Eurasian countries signed the Trans-Asian Railway Network Agreement, under the auspices of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).[1] Less than a decade later, the new Thai rail deal represents the dream of exporting complex and prestigious “made-by-China” projects come true. For the longer term, the direct beneficiaries of the new rails in Thailand and its future extensions are the people and businesses of the country and beyond. Opportunities for growth and development in the region are under creation.
What other grounds have China broken in its economic diplomacy (defined here as promotion on trade and investment through diplomatic initiatives)? Out of Chinese pronouncements and actions by the new leadership formally installed in 2012, what can be discerned about future possibilities? Addressing these and related questions can be helpful in tackling the larger question of how China relates to the rest of the world economy. Let us begin with a sketch of official Chinese visions about the country in the world today.
About the Author
Zha Daojiong is Professor of International Political Economy in the School of International Studies, Peking University. He specialises in researching non-traditional security challenges in China’s international relations, with a particular focus on the energy-food-water nexus. His latest publication is Chinese Investment Overseas: case studies on environmental and social risks (co-edited, in Chinese, Peking University Press, 2014).
Executive Summary
On 19 December 2014, the prime ministers of China and Thailand signed in Bangkok, two memorandums of understanding that will have China construct two dual-track rail lines covering a combined 867 km (542 miles), and buy Thai rice and rubber, as well as other agricultural products. Within the week, the Thai prime minister travelled to Beijing to reaffirm the same agreements just signed. A year earlier, China and Thailand had announced a similar deal, with the Chinese prime minister making a pointed plea to the Thai parliament for legislative approval. That deal was voted down. The rest is history, only that China prevailed in the multinational competition to upgrade the rail system for Thailand.
Symbolism in this Sino-Thai economic cooperation project is profound. Thailand represents a make-or-break for translating the century-old concept of the Kunming-Singapore railway into reality. The idea was formally revived in 2006 when 18 Asian and Eurasian countries signed the Trans-Asian Railway Network Agreement, under the auspices of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).[1] Less than a decade later, the new Thai rail deal represents the dream of exporting complex and prestigious “made-by-China” projects come true. For the longer term, the direct beneficiaries of the new rails in Thailand and its future extensions are the people and businesses of the country and beyond. Opportunities for growth and development in the region are under creation.
What other grounds have China broken in its economic diplomacy (defined here as promotion on trade and investment through diplomatic initiatives)? Out of Chinese pronouncements and actions by the new leadership formally installed in 2012, what can be discerned about future possibilities? Addressing these and related questions can be helpful in tackling the larger question of how China relates to the rest of the world economy. Let us begin with a sketch of official Chinese visions about the country in the world today.
About the Author
Zha Daojiong is Professor of International Political Economy in the School of International Studies, Peking University. He specialises in researching non-traditional security challenges in China’s international relations, with a particular focus on the energy-food-water nexus. His latest publication is Chinese Investment Overseas: case studies on environmental and social risks (co-edited, in Chinese, Peking University Press, 2014).
