Abstract

The story of the so-called Chinese miracle is well known: unprecedented growth rates; an “open door” policy that has attracted extraordinary amounts of foreign investment; a determination to reap the economic rewards of globalization; an apparent commitment to a benign and responsible foreign policy; and a greater involvement in international regimes, including the World Trade Organization (WTO) and United Nations peacekeeping operations.1 In short, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) is no longer an insular power constrained by an ideological straitjacket that prevents full engagement with the international system, but is now firmly embedded within, and more tolerant of the interdependent global environment.