China and the World

The author, a British academic who was President of the University of Hong Kong between 2014 and 2018, discusses the Belt and Road initiative and the Greater Bay Area plan, particularly focusing on the possible implications for the higher education sector in China and beyond.

China has been actively integrating itself in the global economy through Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and increasing trade flows. In order to further expand its foreign market ambition and reinforce itself as a leader in the world economic system, China unleashed the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). One of the main economic incentives behind this initiative is to strengthen China’s integration with Central and Eastern European (CEE) markets. In recent years, an emerging trend for Chinese investors to invest in CEE countries such as Poland can be observed. The aim of this research is to analyze the changing patterns and motives of Chinese Outbound FDI (OFDI) to Europe during the period of 2009–2017 under the guidance of BRI. To explore the heterogeneity of Chinese investments behavior within Europe, this paper summarizes the apparent characteristics of Chinese investment patterns in Western Europe and the CEE region. We show that BRI has — against all expectations — no impact on Chinese investment in the CEE region but — in line with expectations — Chinese investors have changed their motives to invest in CEE countries with a shift towards the service sector. To investigate the impact of BRI on Chinese investors, the period of study is divided into two phases: (1) 2009–2013: period before the proposal of BRI and (2) 2014–2017: period after the initiation of BRI. Then the rationale behind the observed differences is examined in detail.

This paper briefly introduces the basic characters, operation methods, transaction structure and the main functions of the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) and adopts the investigation method of empirical research to analyze and collate in detail the PPP policies and regulations issued by state ministries and commissions since 2014. It also analyses the short-coming existing at the legal level and proposes the suggestions of the next steps should be taken. At the strategic level, PPP national level legislation has a unique institutional innovation significance for current China.

What does it mean to live in a world without global leadership? Where is the European Union heading? What impact will Trump’s “America first” policy and China’s Belt and Road Initiative have on tomorrow’s world order? Geopolitical reflections on the G-Zero world.

This paper invites readers to view China’s invitation for participation in an envisioned Maritime Economic Silk Road by looking at China’s own history of engagement with the rest of the world economy in recent decades. In the 1980s, China began to benefit from foreign funding and companies sharing their expertise and knowledge in building energy and transportation infra-structure in China. Today, China offers to share its successful development experience with other countries through the Belt and Road Initiative. Rather than view the initiative as primarily extending China’s strategic and political influence, it is important to assess each project on its economic merits.

In other words, it is not just about building roads, railways or ports per se but more about how these infrastructure networks can serve as a catalyst to promote industrialization and urbanization in the host country. The Hambantota port is often portrayed as a classic example of China’s debt trap. Yet, the Chinese company involved could have easily terminated its involvement and walked away. Instead, it remained committed to developing not only the port but related projects such as industrial zones and logistical networks. Finally, the host country has to share responsibility together with China in the design and implementation of any Belt and Road project. They should insist on principles and processes like disciplined project financial governance, local labor usage and skills diffusion.

This paper is actually a summary of the authors series of academic research since 1970s. It focuses on interconnectivity of civilizations with a focus on major civilizations and their impact on regional development. It is very clear that in comparison to Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, Christianity and modern Western Civilizations, the Imperial China and its traditional civilizations did not play a profound role outside China as judged by the Kublai Khan and Zheng Hes naval expeditions to East Asia and Indian Ocean areas. Apparently, she did not make good use of the “f-shaped” maritime road either. This “civilization-inabsentia” was probably due to traditional Chinas economy and culture which were built on unstable agricultural bases; thus conditioning its Han Chinese elites had its upper structure that evolved around paternalism and a feudal family system. Its inward-looking approach prohibited them from going outside to impose its cultural system so as to colonize the local populations along the “f-shaped maritime and land Silk Roads”. Her refusal to pursue an open policy inhibited formal international trades, thus giving the British East India Company a good excuse to conduct a so-called “Trade War” against the Qing Dynasty; and the Opium War had caused a total collapse of the Chinese Empire in 1830s. On the contrary, the Westerners have been using the “f-strategy” to impose on a broken China westernization in her search of model of modernizations. Here, the author has been trying to make good use of an “f-shaped” theory and methodology to interpret and understand Chinas historical, contemporary and future development processes. The f : fabric has proved to be an inspiring and useful model to configure Chinas shuttles between the so-called “#1.0: Pre-Western Culture” (before 1500 AD) and the “#2.0: Western Supremacy Culture” (1500–1990) and from here to move ahead for its “Socialism with Chinese characteristics” after entering the 21st century; finally, she could be a pioneer in the pursuit of a “#3.0: Post-Western and Non-Western World”. The tentative conclusion of the paper is that this newly introduced f : BRI-OBOR can be taken as a prelude to the future civilizations which are going to satisfy the human needs so as to promote the so-called “human pentagonal system” much more effectively.