What's SPF China Observer?
It has been said that the so-called “rise of China” has created structural stress at the international system level. During the Belt and Road Summit held in May 2017, President Xi Jinping behaved as if China was the standard-bearer of free trade. It was a stark contrast to President Donald Trump’s “America First.”
China is trying to design international economic rules on its own. The United States probably realizes that China is trying to challenge the international order led by the US up until now. In its National Defense Strategy released on January 19, 2018, the United States Department of Defense placed competition with China and Russia as a top priority. It was a change in policy from the fight against terrorism that has been a priority for the past 15 years.
However, what are the top priorities for China? Is China trying to challenge the United States to rebuild the international order? The fact is, simply observing China’s behavior on an international level cannot accurately answer these questions. The 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China held on October 18, 2017 was conscious of the need to bolster the power of the Communist Party of China and showed a renewed awareness toward strengthening control of the Party and society.
Knowing the state of China’s domestic politics, society, and the economy helps understand the meaning of its foreign diplomacy and security policy. This understanding should be useful for Japan when it thinks about how to respond to China.
This “SPF China Observer” offers a study of contemporary Chinese politics, economics, society, diplomacy and security by Chinese experts in Japan. We hope that it helps readers better understand China.
Core Project Members
Director (quality check)
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Professor, The University of Tokyo
Director (editorial)
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Senior Fellow, The Sasakawa Peace Foundation
Contents
*Unauthorized reproduction is prohibited
No.30 2020/05/08
COVID-19 and Chinese Economy
Osamu Tanaka (Institute of Developing Economies, Chief Senior Researcher)
» Read moreNo.28 2020/05/03
Can we learn from history in the fight against COVID-19? Looking back on East Asia during the Bubonic plague epidemic
Tomoko Ako (Associate Professor, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo)
» Read moreNo.26 2020/04/10
The high mortality rate of COVID-19 and the collapse of the medical system in Wuhan as demonstrated by data
Takashi Sekiyama (Associate Professor, GSAIS, Kyoto University)
» Read moreNo.25 2020/04/07
The effect of the spread of COVID-19 on the US-China political warfare and the international order
Bonji Ohara (Senior Fellow, The Sasakawa Peace Foundation)
» Read moreNo.24 2019/04/03
Everyone is a hero
Kazuyuki Suwa (Professor, School of International Relations, University of Shizuoka)
» Read moreNo.23 2020/02/14
China’s Hong Kong Dilemma
Ichiro Inoue (Professor, Graduate School of Policy Studies, Kwansei Gakuin University)
» Read moreNo.22 2019/09/25
Chinese Troubles at “Home” and Abroad - Demonstrations in Hong Kong and US-China Tensions -
Kazuyuki Suwa (Professor, School of International Relations, University of Shizuoka)
» Read moreNo.21 2019/09/24
Rising tension in the US-China relationship and Taiwan
Ichiro Inoue (Professor, Graduate School of Policy Studies, Kwansei Gakuin University)
» Read moreNo.20 2019/09/05
The Reality of the Chinese economy Based on the Indices
Osamu Tanaka (Institute of Developing Economies, Chief Senior Researcher)
» Read moreNo.19 2019/08/16
Why Is Economic Interdependence Unable to Halt the US-China conflict?
Takashi Sekiyama (Associate Professor, GSAIS, Kyoto University)
» Read moreNo.18 2019/08/02
China’s National Defense White Paper “China’s National Defense in the New Era”
Bonji Ohara (Senior Fellow, The Sasakawa Peace Foundation)
» Read moreNo.17 2019/05/08
China’s perception of the external world: Change and continuity in the press conferences on China’s foreign policy at the National People’s Congress
Ichiro Inoue (Professor, Graduate School of Policy Studies, Kwansei Gakuin University)
» Read moreNo.16 2019/04/10
New Cold War Between the US and China: China’s Response
Bonji Ohara (Senior Fellow, The Sasakawa Peace Foundation)
» Read moreNo.15 2019/04/10
Xi Jinping around Trump’s Little Finger ― Cautious attitudes toward the US emerging from the governmental activity report at the National People’s Congress ―
Kazuyuki Suwa (Professor, School of International Relations, University of Shizuoka)
» Read moreNo.14 2019/04/03
China’s Macroeconomic Policy in 2019 as Seen in the Government Work Report
Osamu Tanaka (China Research Exchange Advisor, Policy Research Institute, Ministry of Finance)
» Read moreNo.13 2019/01/07
Discussions in China Regarding Xi Jinping’s Major Power Diplomacy
Ichiro Inoue (Professor, Graduate School of Policy Studies, Kwansei Gakuin University)
» Read moreNo.12 2018/12/27
Current Status of the Chinese Economy—December 2018—
Osamu Tanaka (China Research Exchange Advisor, Policy Research Institute, Ministry of Finance)
» Read moreNo.11 2018/12/27
Party and State Institutional Reforms in China and Strengthening Presidential Power
Kazuyuki Suwa (Professor, School of International Relations, University of Shizuoka)
» Read moreNo.10 2018/08/19
China’s Preparations to Rival the United States
Ichiro Inoue (Professor, Graduate School of Policy Studies, Kwansei Gakuin University)
» Read moreNo.9 2018/08/12
The Current State of China’s Economy
Osamu Tanaka (Project Professor, Nara Prefectural University)
» Read moreNo.8 2018/08/11
Why should the Xi Jinping Administration Advocate the “Sinicization”of Religion?
» Read moreNo.7 2018/08/10
The convening of the Central Diplomatic Affairs Commission and the Practice of Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy
Kazuyuki Suwa (Professor, School of International Relations, University of Shizuoka)
» Read moreNo.6 2018/06/12
Will the Xi Jinping Administration’s Uncompromising Urban Redevelopment Project Succeed? “Urban villages” (villages in the city) = The fate of lawless zones absent of “citizens”
Tomoko Ako (Associate Professor, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo)
» Read moreNo.5 2018/06/11
The Centralization of Power and the Rule of Law in “New Era” China
Jun Konno (Associate Professor, Gakushuin Women’s College)
» Read moreNo.4 2018/05/07
The Strengthening Diplomatic System in the Second Term of the Xi Jinping Administration
Ichiro Inoue (Professor, Graduate School of Policy Studies, Kwansei Gakuin University)
» Read moreNo.3 2018/04/10
The Meaning Xi Jinping’s “New Era” from the Standpoint of Security
Bonji Ohara (Senior Fellow, The Sasakawa Peace Foundation)
» Read moreNo.2 2018/03/05
The Myitsone “Dam” Today
China’s peripheral diplomacy as seen from Sino-Myanmar relations
Kazuyuki Suwa (Professor, University of Shizuoka)
» Read moreNo.1 2018/03/05
Xi Jinping Economic Thought and Economic Policy in 2018
Osamu Tanaka (China Research Exchange Advisor, Policy Research Institute, Ministry of Finance)
» Read more