China And Her Neighbours: Asian Politics And Diplomacy From Ancient History To The Present Day

For centuries, China has been known as the Middle Kingdom. This name clearly indicates the country&;s place as the powerhouse of the East, but it also serves as a reminder that China is surrounded by dozens of other countries that are intimately linked to its fate. At times, these neighbors have tried to encroach on China&;s power, but in the past decades China has retaken its place as the undisputed cultural, economic, and political center of Asia. And that leaves countries across the continent facing an uncertain future. Does China&;s rise threaten its neighbors? And what, ultimately, is its end goal? Nowhere are these questions more pressing than in the Pacific, where those who share maritime space with China are finding themselves directly in the path of the country&;s expanding territorial claims. In __China and Her Neighbours__, Michael Tai finds answers to these questions through an in-depth exploration of China&;s past. He takes us through thousands of years of Chinese and Asian history, looking at China&;s evolving relations with Japan, Vietnam, the Philippines, and Malaysia specifically. Tai considers how in the past the Chinese state has handled its colonial powers, its territorial disputes, and its tensions with countries like Japan and the United States. As Tai shows, looking closer at how history has shaped the current regime&;s views of regional integration and global governance can reveal much about its future ambitions on the continent. While the disputes in the Pacific have attracted widespread attention, few works have considered the wider historical context of these tensions. This makes __China and Her Neighbours__ an essential and distinctive perspective on one of the key confrontations of the twenty-first century. Cover Half Title About the Author Title Page Copyright Dedication Contents Asian diplomacy from ancient history to the present Chapter 1: Introduction: can the world trust China? Chapter 2: China and Japan Early contacts Tribute system Japan in the tribute system Relations with the Tang Relations with the Song Relations with the Yuan Relations with the Ming Toyotomi Hideyoshi San Francisco system Political identity Chapter 3: The Ryukyu Kingdom Discrimination on the mainland Okinawan migration overseas America and the Ryukyu Kingdom Typhoon of steel Chapter 4: Vietnam A thousand-year rule Independence and Chinese invasions The Tay Son uprising French rule Sino-Viet relations during the colonial period Ho Chi Minh World War II The tiger and the elephant Dien Bien Phu The Geneva accord The second Indochina war Daniel Ellesberg and the Pentagon Papers Discord over Cambodia Post Vietnam War Invasion of Cambodia Chapter 5: The Philippines The Chinese in the Philippines Chinese mestizos Nationalism Spanish rule Secularization José Rizal Revolution The Katipunan The battle of Manila Bay The siege of Manila Chinese mestizos in the Philippine-American war José Ignacio Paua American conduct Annexation of the Philippines The Chinese under American Rule The Japanese Occupation Post war integration China policy Chapter 6: Malaysia Early contacts with China The Malacca Sultanate The Portuguese The Dutch The British The Chinese Secret societies Kapitan Yap Ah Loy Economic progress Banking Manufacturing Europeans and Asians Political awakening Tan Kah Kee Japanese occupation Chin Peng Postwar Malaya Onn Jaafar 13 May New economic policy Chinese under the NEP Sino-Malaysian relations Mahathir Mohamad Chapter 7: Territorial disputes South China Sea Scramble for rocks The Senakaku/Diaoyu Islands Tokyo’s claim Chapter 8: China and the world order The Portuguese The Dutch The British The French The Americans The missionaries The treaty of Versailles From isolation to integration Notes References Index For centuries, China has been known as the Middle Kingdom. This name clearly indicates the country's place as the powerhouse of the East, but it also serves as a reminder that China is surrounded by dozens of other countries that are intimately linked to its fate. At times, these neighbors have tried to encroach on China's power, but in the past decades China has retaken its place as the undisputed cultural, economic, and political center of Asia. And that leaves countries across the continent facing an uncertain future. Does China's rise threaten its neighbors? And what, ultimately, is its end goal? Nowhere are these questions more pressing than in the Pacific, where those who share maritime space with China are finding themselves directly in the path of the country's expanding territorial claims. In China and Her Neighbours, Michael Tai finds answers to these questions through an in-depth exploration of China's past. He takes us through thousands of years of Chinese and Asian history, looking at China's evolving relations with Japan, Vietnam, the Philippines, and Malaysia specifically. Tai considers how in the past the Chinese state has handled its colonial powers, its territorial disputes, and its tensions with countries like Japan and the United States. As Tai shows, looking closer at how history has shaped the current regime's views of regional integration and global governance can reveal much about its future ambitions on the continent. While the disputes in the Pacific have attracted widespread attention, few works have considered the wider historical context of these tensions. This makes China and Her Neighbours an essential and distinctive perspective on one of the key confrontations of the twenty-first century.-- Provided by publisher For centuries, China was confident in its role as the 'Middle Kingdom', the undisputed cultural, economic and political powerhouse of Asia. Today, with China once again a leading player on the world stage, countries across the continent are facing an uncertain future. Does China's rise threaten its neighbours? And what, ultimately, is its end goal? Nowhere are these questions more pressing than in the Pacific, where China's maritime neighbours find themselves directly in the path of the country's expanding territorial claims. In this rich historical exploration, Michael Tai finds answers to these and other questions through an in-depth exploration of China's past. Spanning thousands of years of Chinese and Asian history, China and Her Neighbours looks at China's evolving relations with Japan, Vietnam, the Philippines, and Malaysia. While the disputes in the Pacific have attracted widespread attention, very few investigations have considered the wider historical context of these tensions. A comprehensive introduction to thousands of years of Asian political and diplomatic history, offering crucial historical underpinning to the contemporary rise of China.