China as a Polar Great Power

This book explores China's growing strength at the poles and how it could shift the global balance of power.

Anne-Marie Brady (Author)

9781316631256, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 18 August 2017

290 pages, 18 b/w illus.
22.9 x 15.2 x 1.4 cm, 0.49 kg

'Brady's fact-filled book is well-written and revelatory. It deserves a wide audience, for anyone interested in the future of either polar region will find it both instructive and interesting.' Jeff Rubin, The Polar Times

China has emerged as a member of the elite club of nations who are powerful at both global poles. Polar states are global giants, strong in military, scientific, and economic terms. The concept of a polar great power is relatively unknown in international relations studies; yet China, a rising power globally, is now widely using this term to categorize its aspirations and emphasize the significance of the polar regions to their national interests. China's focus on becoming a polar great power represents a fundamental re-orientation - a completely new way of imagining the world. China's push into these regions encompasses maritime and nuclear security, the frontlines of climate change research, and the possibility of a resources bonanza. As shown in this book, China's growing strength at the poles will be a game-changer for a number of strategic vulnerabilities that could shift the global balance of power in significant and unexpected ways.

Introduction
1. Polar governance
2. The Polar regions in China's national narrative
3. China's geostrategic interests in the Polar regions
4. The party-state-military-market nexus in China's Polar policymaking
5. Evaluating China as a Polar power
6. Cooperation or conflict? China's position on points of contention in the Polar regions
7. From Polar great power to global power? Global governance implications of China's Polar interests
8. The rise of a new great power.

Subject Areas: Constitution: government & the state [JPHC]