China’s Foreign Policy since 1978: Return to Power

Nicholas Khoo, Associate Professor, Politics Programme, University of Otago, New Zealand

The success of China’s post-1978 reforms has provided it with significant resources to reshape its external environment. This book shows how China has leveraged this power from a neorealist perspective, projecting military and economic power to advance Chinese interests.

‘Nicholas Khoo employs deep knowledge and keen insight in this masterful assessment of China’s post-Cold War rise in Asia to stake out a persuasive neorealist argument viewing China’s behavior as based fundamentally on state interests and relative power. With extensive research in Chinese and foreign sources, this clear and informative analysis lays down an important marker in the ongoing debate on how the world should view China’s rise.’
– Robert Sutter, The George Washington University, US

‘China’s Foreign Policy since 1978: Return to Power provides an excellent, fast-paced review of the emerging bi-polar world created by the increasingly competitive US-China relationship. China, the United States, Japan, and the ASEAN countries must accept a new normal that will be more competitive and conflictual. Khoo's latest book can be used as a text for both graduate and undergraduate courses on the international relations of East and Southeast Asia.’
– Karl Jackson, Johns Hopkins University, US

‘This book enters a crowded field, and on two counts, succeeds in its aim of offering a fresh perspective. First, it cuts through the fog generated by the existing literature on China's rise. Second, it offers a compelling realist alternative based on state interests and rising Chinese power projection capabilities.’
– Michael Rainsborough, King's College London, UK