Friday, September 16, 2022 — 3:15 p.m - 4:30 p.m.

Zoom registration: https://bit.ly/BreslinUVA

New Cabell Hall 309

The concept of Economic Statecraft, and its close relative Geoeconomics, have become increasingly popular as frameworks for understanding the drivers and consequences of China’s international economic interactions. Important in their own right in suggesting that geostrategic ambition are at the heart of even commercial projects pursued by private actors, these concepts also feed into other understandings of Chinese party/state objectives such as “debt trap diplomacy.”

Such an understanding of intent generates a concomitant understanding of what is evidence. And the BRI has been one of the key sources of evidence of Chinese Economic Statecraft in action. Though not the only reason, it contributed to a rather rapid and significant change in dominant perceptions of the consequences of China’s rise in some parts of the world. The shift from the Golden Era of UK-China relations to China now being identified as a major threat to UK national security is a particular good example. It also shows how perceptions of statecraft and (in)security are often predicated on a pre-existing understanding of both the nature of Chinese politics, and rather vague and imprecise concerns about “what China wants.”

Shaun Breslin is Professor of Politics and International Studies at the University of Warwick in the UK. He is also Co-Editor of the Pacific Review, Senior Research Fellow at the Wong MNC Center, Associate Senior Research Fellow at ISPI in Milan, and Scientific Advisor on the ForAc research project in Finland. His research focuses on the intersection between China’s domestic political economy and international relations, with a side interest in comparative approaches to regionalism and regionalisation. His latest book, China Risen? Studying Chinese Global Power, was published by Bristol University Press in 2021.

Registration here is required for this talk!

In China’s Western Horizon, Daniel S. Markey previews how China’s efforts to transform its wealth and economic power into potent tools of global influence are likely to play out across the swath of Eurasia that includes South Asia, Central Asia, and the Middle East.

On balance, Markey anticipates that China’s deepening involvement will play to the advantage of regional strongmen and exacerbate the political tensions within and among Eurasian states. To make the most of America’s limited influence among China’s western horizon (and elsewhere), he argues that U.S. policymakers should pursue a selective and localized strategy in Eurasia as they navigate a future of global competition with Beijing.

Daniel Markey is a senior research professor at Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). He also serves as the academic director of the SAIS Global Policy Program. He teaches courses in international politics and policy. Dr. Markey’s latest book, China’s Western Horizon: Beijing and the New Geopolitics of Eurasia, was published by Oxford University Press in March 2020.

Please join us for a talk by Huaichuan Rui, Professor of International Business, School of Management, Royal Holloway, University of London on Thursday, 19 November from 1 pm to 2:15 pm. The title of her talk is: ‘Chinese Multinationals: Strategy, Capability and Impact.’ 

Rui has done extensive work on emerging market multinationals (EMNEs) and she is the Principal Investigator of the long-running ‘China’s Outward Investment and Multinational Enterprises’ project at Royal Holloway. 

To attend the talk, please login for the Zoom event here.

Bob Davis and Lingling Wei of the Wall Street Journal will be joining the East Asia Center to discuss "China and the U.S. -- A Superpower Showdown (Could Relations Get Any Worse?)" The book launch for their new work, Superpower Showdown: How the Battle Between Trump and Xi Threatens a New Cold War, the event will be held Friday, September 25, starting at 3:15pm. This online event will be broadcast through Zoom Webinar.

To register for this event, please visit https://virginia.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_lp1uKpFaTKqfI56aHAHJoQ

For more information, visit the East Asia center’s website!

Please join the Assessment of China’s Belt & Road Initiative for a presentation by Professor Kerem Cosar, Department of Economics at UVA called “The Geopolitics of International Trade in Southeast Asia, the paper is available at the following link.  

You can register for the talk at the following link: 

https://virginia.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_ygeRukOjQbKzShfv__KnhA

The Belt and Road Initiative continues to evolve and expand, and to-date China has signed 197 documents on BRI cooperation with 137 countries and 30 international organisations. Under the umbrella of the BRI, the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) has been heralded as a significant 'pilot project' by Chinese as well as Pakistani policymakers. Of the five constituent Economic Corridors of the Belt, CPEC is the only bilateral corridor and is at an advanced stage of construction, with multiple projects in the energy and transport sectors either completed or in advanced stages of construction. This paper seeks to unpack what it means for CPEC to be the ‘pilot project’ of the BRI. It does so by looking at the progress of CPEC related projects in the transport and energy sector as well as the expansion of cooperation in other areas as CPEC enters its second phase. Using primary evidence, the paper also looks at the economic and political implications of increasing Chinese investment in Pakistan. Lastly, as cooperation between the two countries evolves, the paper looks at whether developing countries like Pakistan can take advantage of the deeper interaction with Chinese policymakers and firms. It is especially important for developing countries that seek to use Chinese investment and know-how to effect structural change in the economy, especially as the state’s capacity to implement an activist industrial policy has been hollowed out under decades of neo-liberal reforms.

Tayyab Safdar is a Post-Doctoral Researcher at the Centre of Development Studies at Cambridge University. His current research explores the economic and political dimensions of increasing Chinese investment in host countries that are a part of the Belt & Road Initiative (BRI). The research uses evidence from the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), one of the pilot projects within the Belt & Road Initiative (BRI). The research is based on a detailed case study analysis of projects undertaken in Pakistan’s power generation and transport sector. It has been informed by detailed fieldwork in Pakistan. Before joining the Centre of Development Studies, Tayyab was an LSE Fellow at the Department of International Development, London School of Economics. Tayyab completed his PhD and MPhil in Development Studies from the Centre of Development Studies, University of Cambridge. His doctoral research focused on the effects of economic globalisation on agro-industrial value chains in developing countries.

Abstract:

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), launched by China in 2013, seeks to improve the connectivity between China and the rest of Asia, the Middle East and on to Africa and Europe. From an economic perspective, it has the potential to upgrade and transform the transportation, communication and energy infrastructures of a large group of developing countries. From a political perspective, the initiative reflects the projection of China’s influence and geostrategic interests into surrounding regions, and the consolidation of its emerging position as a world power. However, the details of some of the projects, their economic and political implications, and the ways in which they have been financed, have proven controversial. This workshop will assess the economic and politics costs, benefits, and risks of the BRI and examine the American response. It will bring together scholars and policy makers to present their research and share their perspectives with interested faculty and students at the University of Virginia. The workshop is part of the UVA project “Assessment of China’s Belt and Road Initiative,” led by an interdisciplinary group of faculty members who share an interest in the BRI. The workshop will be held in conjunction with a panel discussion at the Miller Center on the implications for the U.S. and the American response.

Schedule: 

Morning:

“The American Policy Response to the Belt and Road Initiative”

Panel discussion at the Miller Center, 2201 Old Ivy Rd, Charlottesville, VA 22903

11:00 am–12:15 pm

A moderated discussion videotaped for live-streamed and distribution on Facebook Live.

Moderator: Syaru Shirley Lin

Participants: Rush Doshi, Kathryn Kauffman, Kerem Coşar

(Separate registration required for the morning event at the Miller Center)

Afternoon:

"The Politics and Economics of China's Belt and Road Initiative"

Workshop at the Mcintire School, Rouss/ Robertson 123, 125 Ruppel Dr, Charlottesville, VA 22903

2:15–5:00 pm

Politics of Belt and Road

Moderator: Syaru Shirley Lin (Department of Politics, UVA)

2:15–2:45 pm

             “The Role of Belt and Road Initiative in China's Foreign Policy”

            Rush Doshi, Brookings Institution

2:45–3:15 pm

            “The American Strategy in Promoting Development Around the World”

            Kathryn Kaufman, Overseas Private Investment Corporation

 3:15–3:30 pm Coffee Break

Economics of Belt and Road

Moderator: Kerem Coşar (Department of Economics, UVA)

3:30–4:00 pm

            “Geographic Connectivity and Cross-Border Investment on the Belt and Road”

            Maggie Chen, George Washington University

4:00–4:30 pm

            “Common Transport Infrastructure: A Quantitative Model and Estimates from the Belt and Road Initiative”

            François de Soyres, Federal Reserve Board of Governors

4:30–5:00 pm

            Discussion, followed by reception

Organizers: Syaru Shirley Lin (Politics), Kerem Coşar (Economics)

The workshop is part of the “Assessment of China’s Belt and Road Initiative” Project at UVA, supported by the College and Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, Center for Global Inquiry and Innovation, East Asia Center, and a gift from Mr. James H.T. McConnell, Jr. In addition, we are grateful for additional support from the Miller Center, the McIntire School of Commerce, the departments of Politics, Economics, and the National Security Policy Center of the Batten School.

List of hotel recommendations in the area:

Oakhurst Inn

4-star hotel

122 Oakhurst Cir

Charlottesville, VA 22903

(434) 872-0100

Graduate Charlottesville

3-star hotel

1309 W Main St

Charlottesville, VA 22903

(434) 295-4333

Courtyard by Marriott Charlottesville - University Medical Center

3-star hotel

1201 W Main St

Charlottesville, VA 22903

(434) 977-1700

Hampton Inn & Suites Charlottesville-At The University

900 W Main St

Charlottesville, VA 22903

(434) 923-8600

China’s advance on the African continent is often depicted as an inevitable consequence of the vast power asymmetries between a large global power (i.e., China) and its comparatively small and weak partners (i.e., African countries). Indeed, China enjoys an enduring advantage over even the largest African states on the international level (i.e., state power), the state level (i.e., state capacity), and the individual level (i.e., policy coordination and training). But are these large and multi-tiered asymmetries insurmountable, or can they at least partially be overcome? How have small African countries sought to gain agency vis-à-vis China, and how, in turn, has China responded? To investigate such questions, over the last three years Joshua Eisenman and Ambassador David H. Shinn have conducted more than 200 elite interviews in China and five African countries. Their research will culminate in their second co-authored book, which is under contract with the University of Pennsylvania Press

Speaker: Joshua Eisenman, Associate Professor, Keough School of Global Affairs, University of Notre Dame

Professor Joshua Eisenman’s research focuses on the political economy of China’s development and its foreign relations with the United States and the developing world—particularly Africa. His newest book, Red China’s Green Revolution: Technological Innovation, Institutional Change, and Economic Development Under the Commune (Columbia University Press, 2018), explains how more capital investment and better farming techniques increased agricultural productivity growth in Maoist China. In China Steps Out: Beijing’s Major Power Engagement with the Developing World (Routledge, 2018), Eisenman and Eric Heginbotham analyze China’s policies toward the developing world. China and Africa: A Century of Engagement (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2012), which Eisenman co-authored with Ambassador David H. Shinn, was named one of the top three books about Africa by Foreign Affairs. Eisenman and Shinn’s next book, under contract with Penn Press, will examine the China-Africa political and security relationship. Eisenman holds a Ph.D. in political science from UCLA, and a MA from Johns Hopkins University (SAIS).