The significance of regionalism as an element of China's security and foreign policy : the case of the Tumen River area development project(TRADP)

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

Since the end of Cold War, processes of regionalisation have developed in a world experiencing globalisation. The Tumen River Area Development Project (TRADP) is an UNDP-initiated multilateral sub-regional scheme for economic cooperation that emerged in 1992 and was institutionalised by the establishment of the Tumen Secretariat in 1995. It is based on 'North-South' cooperation as well as a socialist-capitalist division of labour among six neighbouring countries (China, Russia, DPRK, ROK, Mongolia, and Japan), involving certain adjacent areas in the Tumen River region - which serves as a natural border for China, Russia, and North Korea. Arguing that the project has a significance that is more political than economic, the thesis will explore the significance of regionalism as an element of China's security and foreign policy. China was the project's most active supporter, from the late 1980s to the late 1990s. This thesis will argue that China developed the Tumen project not only as part of its own pursuit of domestic development, but also in order to take the initiative in regional economic development and to alter the distribution of power in Northeast Asia, in particular, the Korean Peninsula.
The thesis will also attempt to explain why China has found it so difficult to bring the project to fruition. The Chinese government did not provide proper infrastructure and give the project high priority in its national development policy. As a result, the project could not be attractive to the private sector, which was to be the major source of international investment. Further, the participating countries were concerned about Chinese motives and the economic and political-security implications of the project for the region. Thus, the project came to be regarded as a political ploy and was treated accordingly. This research hopes to make a contribution in two major ways. One is to understand the characteristics and trends of regionalism in East Asia; and the other is to delineate the scope and limits of China's seemingly more interdependent, cooperative, and multilateral foreign behaviour since the late 1980s.

목차 (Table of Contents)

• Title = 1
• Abstract = 2
• Table of Contents = 3
• List of Figures = 12
• List of Tables = 13
• Abbreviations = 14
• Acknowledgements = 16
• Chapter One. Introduction = 18
• Introduction = 18
• Bringing in the two themes of the thesis = 20
• I. Regionalism in international relations = 22
• 1. The concern for regionalism in cooperation between states:Theoretical setting = 22
• 1.1 Relative versus absolute gains = 23
• 1.2 Why cooperation does not arise in most cases = 24
• 1.3 When cooperation is possible in specific cases = 26
• 1.4 The number of actors = 27
• 1.5 The importance of political decisions = 28
• 2. The political economy of regionalism:Empirical setting = 28
• 2.1 Successful cases of regionalism = 29
• Europe = 29
• North America = 30
• 2.2 Unsuccessful cases = 31
• Central and South Americas = 31
• South Asia = 31
• Middle East and North Africa = 32
• 2.3 Asia-Pacific:Test case at trial = 32
• 3. A contribution to the study of international relations = 34
• II. Regionalism in China's foreign policy = 38
• 1. Recent study on the TRADP = 38
• 1.1 Chinese scholarship = 38
• 1.2 Non-Chinese scholarship = 40
• 2. Defining China's TRADP strategic objectives = 42
• 3. Assessing obstacles to China's TRADP policy = 44
• 4. A contribution to the study of Chinese foreign policy = 47
• 5. Methodology = 50
• 6. Structure of the thesis = 52
• Chapter Two. Regionalism:Theoretical Dimension = 54
• Introduction = 54
• I. Regionalism in theory = 54
• 1. Concepts of regionalism = 55
• Regionalisation = 55
• Regional interstate cooperation = 56
• Regional awareness and identity = 56
• 2. Theoretical approaches to regionalism = 57
• 2.1 Approaches of the four theories = 57
• 2.2 Critiques of the four theories = 58
• 3. East Regionalism = 59
• 3.1 Why EU-type regionalism does not exist in East Asia = 60
• 3.2 East Asian regionalism = 62
• II. Regionalism in East Asia = 64
• 1. Defining Sub-regional Economic Zones (SREZs) = 65
• 1.1 Concepts = 65
• 1.2 Modalities = 65
• 1.3 SREZs in East Asia = 66
• SIJORI (Singapore-Johore-Riau) = 66
• GSCEZ (Greater South China Economic Zone) = 67
• NGT (North Growth Triangle) = 67
• EGT (East Growth Triangle) = 67
• Baht Economic Zone = 68
• Mekong River Basin Project = 68
• Yellow Sea and Sea of Japan Rims = 68
• 1.4 Categories of SREZs = 72
• A metropolitan spillover into the hinterland = 72
• Geographically proximate areas with common interests = 72
• Joint development of natural resources and infrastructure = 72
• 1.5 Classification by initiatives = 72
• 2. Objectives of the SREZ = 73
• 2.1 Performance legitimacy = 73
• 2.2 Bargaining power = 73
• 2.3 Reducing the likelihood of conflict = 74
• 2.4 Harmony with higher-level regional organisations = 74
• 3. Problems and issues = 75
• 3.1 Financial constraint = 75
• 3.2 Lack of coordination = 75
• 3.3 Distribution issues = 75
• 3.4 Inter-provincial rivalry = 76
• 3.5 Centre-provincial tensions = 76
• 3.6 Allotment among countries = 77
• 3.7 Differential sovereignty levels:Unclear major players = 77
• 3.8 Different development preference of each country = 78
• 3.9 Incomplete triangle = 78
• 3.10 Political sensitivity = 78
• 3.11 Discouragement of economic cooperation at a higher regional level = 79
• 4. Why are SIJORI and GSCEZ successful when others have failed = 79
• 4.1 A comparison of SIJORI and the GSCEZ = 79
• 4.2 Political commitment:The key success factor of SREZs = 80
• 5. The number of actors = 81
• 6. Implications for the TRADP = 82
• Chapter Three. The TRADP = 84
• Introduction = 84
• 1. A profile of TRADP 84
• 1.1 Geography of Tumen River area = 84
• 1.2 Regional scope of the TRADP = 85
• 1.3 Vision and goals = 88
• 1.4 Economic complementarities = 90
• Natural resources = 90
• Population and labour force = 90
• Capital technology = 91
• Geographical location = 91
• 2. The view of the UNDP = 94
• 3. TRADP membership and organisations = 97
• Tumen Consultation Commission = 97
• Tumen Coordination Committee = 97
• National Teams = 98
• Tumen Secretariat = 98
• Conclusion = 104
• Chapter Four. Regionalism:The Chinese Dimension = 105
• Introduction = 105
• I. Regionalism in China's foreign economic relations = 106
• 1 China's intra-regional economic relations = 106
• 1.1 Hong Kong = 107
• 1.2 Taiwan = 108
• 1.3 Japan = 108
• 1.4 South Korea = 108
• 1.5 ASEAN = 109
• 1.6 The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) = 109
• 2. Foreign economic relations of China's provinces = 109
• 2.1 Guangdong Province = 110
• 2.2 Fujian Province = 111
• 2.3 Shandong Province = 111
• 2.4 Liaoning Province l 112
• 2.5 Jilin Province = 112
• 2.6 Heilongjiang Province = 113
• 2.7 Yunnan Province = 114
• 2.8 Inner Mongolia Province = 114
• 2.9 Tibet = 115
• 2.10 Xinjiang = 115
• 3. Special Economic Zones (SEZs) = 116
• 3.1 The development history of SEZs = 116
• 3.2 The purpose and functions of SEZs = 117
• II. China's foreign policy of interdependence = 120
• 1. Levels of analysing Chinese foreign policy = 120
• 1.1 The IR theorists' approach = 120
• The realist perspective = 120
• The liberal perspective = 122
• The Marxist perspective = 122
• 1.2 A critique of the three perspectives = 123
• Critique of realism = 123
• Critique of liberalism = 124
• Critique of Marxism = 124
• 1.3 The approach of specialists on China = 125
• Historical factor = 125
• Domestic political factor = 126
• Ideological factor = 126
• 1.4 A critique of the three factors = 127
• Critique of the historical factor = 127
• Critique of the domestic political factor = 128
• Critique of the ideological factor = 128
• 1.5 Towards synthesis:Realism with 'Chinese Characteristics' = 128
• 2. Interdependence as China's foreign policy choice = 130
• 2.1 Interdependence in Western literature = 130
• 2.2 The Chinese view of interdependence = 132
• 2.3 Goals of interdependence diplomacy = 133
• 2.4 China's good neighbourliness = 135
• 2.5 Constraints to China's interdependence due to neighbouring countries' concern for relative gains = 137
• 3. Sub-regionalism in China's regional policy = 140
• 3.1 The GMS in Chinese foreign policy = 141
• 3.2 The significance of the TRADP = 143
• Conclusion = 145
• Chapter Five. The Perspective of Jilin Province = 147
• Introduction = 147
• I. Evolution of regional development policy:An overview = 148
• 1. Regional development in the Pre-Tiananmen Period (1953-89) = 148
• 2. New regional development policy in the Post-Tiananmen Period (1990- ) = 151
• 3. Concluding remarks = 153
• II. The three Northeast provinces = 154
• 1. Background = 154
• 1.1 Geography = 154
• 1.2 Trade = 155
• 1.3 Investment = 155
• 1.4 The development of Northeast China = 162
• 1.5 Northeast Phenomenon = 162
• 2. Development strategies of the three Northeast provinces = 167
• Coastal Economic Strip centred at Dalian (Yanbian) = 168
• Border Economic Development and Opening Strip (Yanbian and Yanjiang) = 168
• Economic Strip with Harbin-Dalian Railroad as the Axis (Yanxian) = 169
• Western Resources Development Zone = 169
• 3. Concluding remarks = 170
• III. TRADP and Jilin Province = 170
• 1. Jilin Province:Provincial level = 170
• 1.1 Background = 170
• 1.2 Economy = 171
• 1.3 Development strategy = 173
• 2. Yanbian Autonomous Prefecture:Local level = 175
• 2.1 Background = 175
• 2.2 Economy = 175
• 2.3 Development strategy = 179
• Yanji Economic Development Zone = 180
• Dunhua Economic Development Zone = 180
• Tumen Economic Development Zone = 181
• Antu Changbai Mountain Economic Development Zone = 181
• 3. Hunchun City:City level = 182
• 3.1 Background = 182
• 3.2 Economy = 183
• 3.3 Development strategy = 184
• 4. The role of Beijing, Jilin and Yanbian in the TRADP policy-making = 185
• 5. Institutional arrangements = 191
• Conclusion = 194
• Chapter Six. The Perspective of Beijing = 195
• Introduction = 195
• I. The Korean minority policy = 196
• 1. China's minority policy = 196
• 1.1 Background = 196
• 1.2 Characteristics of nationalities = 199
• 1.3 Evolution of China's nationality policy = 199
• 1.4 Limits of China's nationality policy = 200
• 2. China's Korean minority policy = 201
• 2.1 Background = 201
• 2.2 History of Korean migration = 202
• 2.3 Changes to China's Korean policy = 203
• 2.4 Korean minority problem in the 1990s = 204
• 2.5 Policy measures = 206
• Hard line measures = 206
• Soft measures = 207
• 3. Concluding remarks = 207
• II. Navigation to the East Sea through the Tumen River = 208
• 1. History of navigation attempts = 208
• 2. China's position on the legal and historical claims of navigation = 213
• 3. Implications = 214
• 3.1 International maritime aspect = 215
• 3.2 Domestic economic aspect = 215
• 3.3 Possible maritime claims = 215
• 3.4 Military value = 215
• 3.5 Policy alternative = 216
• 4. Concluding remarks = 216
• III. Stability in the Korean Peninsula = 217
• 1. Evolution of China's Korean policy = 217
• 2. China's interests in the Korean Peninsula = 220
• 2.1 Geostrategic importance = 220
• 2.2 Against 'peaceful evolution' = 220
• 2.3 Stability in Northeast China = 220
• 2.4 The North Korea card = 221
• 2.5 Uncertainties in the wake of Korean unification = 221
• 2.6 'Two-Koreas' as a reflection of China's core interests = 221
• 3. Policy measures = 222
• 3.1 Political and security supports = 222
• 3.2 Economic support = 223
• 4. The TRADP as China's best means to lead the reform of North Korean system = 223
• 4.1 Process of political and economic reform = 224
• 4.2 Preserving an economic buffer in the Peninsula = 225
• 5. Concluding remarks = 226
• IV. Taking the initiative in regional distribution of power = 226
• 1. Asia-Pacific focused omni-directional foreign policy = 227
• 2. Sub-regionalism as a pivot of onmi-directional foreign policy = 228
• 2.1 South China Economic Circle (SCEC) = 229
• 2.2 Central Asia Economic Circle (SWEC) = 230
• 2.3 Northeast Economic Circle (NEEC) = 230
• The Yellow Sea Economic Area = 230
• The Sea of Japan Rim Economic Area = 230
• The Bohai Rim Area = 231
• The Heilongjiang Economic Circle = 231
• 2.4 Strategic objectives of China's sub-regionalism policy = 233
• Conclusion = 235
• Chapter Seven. Economic and Institutional Constraints on the TRADP = 236
• Introduction = 236
• I. Evolution of the TRADP:An overview = 237
• 1. Time of 'desire' (1990-94) = 237
• 2. Time of 'practice' (1995-97) = 241
• 3. Time of 'stagnation' (1998-2000) = 244
• 4. Conclusing remarks = 245
• II. TRADP and the five countries concerned = 246
• 1. North Korea = 246
• 2. Russia = 248
• 3. South Korea = 251
• 4. Mongolia = 252
• 5. Japan = 253
• III. Constraints in and around the project itself = 256
• 1. Limits of the role of UNDP as a mediator = 256
• 1.1 Unrealistic plans = 256
• 1.2 Neutrality doubt = 257
• 1.3 Member countries' disappointment at UNDP inefficiency = 257
• 1.4 Oversized bureaucracy = 257
• 1.5 Funding limits = 258
• 2. The view of the private sector = 258
• 2.1 Geological and natural constraints of the project = 258
• 2.2 Exaggerated value of the project = 259
• 2.3 Poor infrastructure = 259
• 2.4 Insufficient cooperation among countries = 259
• 2.5 Legacy of the socialist economic system = 260
• 2.6 Irrational price and incentive structures = 260
• 2.7 Bureaucratic structures organisations = 260
• 2.8 Different administrative levels:Unclear ill-defined major players in the project = 261
• 2.9 Weak trade mechanism = 261
• 2.10 Financial supply constraints = 261
• 2.11 Limited support from the public sector = 262
• 2.12 Scepticism of the private sector = 263
• Conclusion = 265
• Chapter Eight. Political and Strategic Constraints on China's TRADP Policy = 266
• Introduction = 266
• I. Inter-provincial rivalry and centre's response:Domestic level = 266
• 1. The compromise between the three northeast provinces = 267
• 2. Beijing's response = 270
• 3. Concluding remarks = 274
• II. The TRADP as one issue in the North Korea problem:The Korean Peninsula level = 274
• 1. Importance of North Korea at the international strategic balance = 275
• 2. North Korea's survival game = 276
• 3. South Korea's North Korea policy = 279
• 4. Russia's North Korea policy = 281
• 5. Japan's North Korea policy = 282
• 6. The United States' North Korea policy = 283
• III. A conflict between major powers' strategies toward the regional distribution of power:The Northeast Asia level = 285
• 1. Russia = 285
• 2. Japan = 286
• 3. The United States = 288
• 4. China = 289
• Conclusion = 291
• Chapter Nine. Conclusion = 292
• 1. China's TRADP policy dilemma = 293
• 1.1 China's TRADP policy objectives = 294
• 1.2 China's TRADP policy failures = 295
• 2. The TRADP at the crossroads of East Asian regionalism = 297
• 2.1 Regionalism under the comparative perspective = 298
• 2.2 The ways to revive the TRADP = 301
• 3. Concluding remarks = 304
• Bibliography = 306
• I. Primary sources = 306
• 1. Documents from international organisations = 306
• 1.1 United Nations Development Programme = 306
• 1.2 Other international organisations = 307
• 1.3 International organisation-sponsored project papers = 307
• 2. Official publications = 307
• 3. Official magazines and newspapers = 309
• 4. Interviews = 310
• II. Secondary sources = 311
• 1. Books and monographs = 311
• 2. Academic articles = 314
• 3. Articles in magazines and newspapers = 333
• 4. Conferences = 334