Main Characteristics of China's Foreign Policy - Investments and Conflicts

By Shahab Sabahi

Energy and Environment - Policy analysis research group

China claims that its diplomacy aims at safeguarding national interests and promoting world peace
To achieve the former target, China’s diplomacy has well paved the road for Chinese enterprises to take stakes abroad. The world’s second largest economy has vastly invested in the natural resources development projects. It could secure a few oil and gas exploration and development concessions in the Middle East where traditionally was the stronghold of the WEST. China’s Diplomacy helps Chinese enterprises dominate the domestic markets of some host countries and colonize them with the new strands of Chinese skilled and unskilled workforces. China finances public projects across Africa and the Middle East and provides technical supports, albeit not giving philanthropy. Very on time, when the EU were struggling their debt, to diversify cash reserves and influence the EU, China seized the opportunity and jumped into the EU markets. This move made both sides satisfy. In one hand it helps the EU hold breath for a while and bring home some cash. In the other hand China sets up a new save and opens a wider market.
Laughs, smiles, shaking hands, photos, flags waving and press conferences and of course hope of prosperity are the outcomes of China’s Diplomacy.
What about World peace? Is really China’s foreign policy toward the peace?
China has played different games in the Asia-Pacific neighborhood and looks its diplomacy is at odd with world peace.
China antagonizes its neighboring countries. During two incidents on May 26th and June 9th, between Vietnam and China, Vietnamese oil exploration vessels conducting seismic surveys were harassed by Chinese ships. This has brought to a head the long-standing territorial dispute over the areas around the Paracel and Spratly Islands in the South China Sea.
Philippine, Taiwan, Brunei and Malaysia also claim these islands and the discussion on the disputed islands is anxiously ongoing.
In another accident tension grew high when Japanese coast guard detained a Chinese trawler near the disputed Senkaku Islands.
In northern Myanmar, Chinese dam projects caused a fight broke out between the Myanmar Army and the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) at the Dapein dams, which are being constructed by China’s state-owned Datang Company.
They are a couple of evidences that show China’s policy for Asia is not very much peaceful. Apart from securing natural resources, geopolitical competition is also on China’s agenda. With China rising as a naval power, the current dominant power in the Pacific Ocean, the United States, is looking for ways to maintain its influence. China adopts this provocative approach in Asia to push back and prevent containment of US’s naval expansion.