China And Other Developing Countries
This course introduces students to appreciate complexities in China’s pursuit of relations with other developing countries. Whereas official actions and expressions from China and some major countries of the Global South to demonstrate political/diplomatic solidarity more readily capture attention and imagination, each cooperates and competes with one another to maximize opportunities and minimize risks for itself. It is therefore essential to scrutinize structural issues permeating interactions among them in the recent past and into the future. Issues selected for detailed examination include: Chinese initiatives (Belt and Roald, global development, global security), developing country institutions (BRICS+, Shanghai Cooperation Organization, etc.), development finance, preferential trade arrangements, rules for investment, energy cooperation, and technology transfer.
The course meets once a week for one and a half hours. During the first half of the class, the professor provides introductory comments on the day’s topic. The remainder of the class is devoted to short student presentations of the literature and class discussion. Students are expected to do the required reading in advance, participate actively in class discussions, participate in one group presentation, and write a paper on a related topic.