On December 11-12, 2016, Griffith University and Tsinghua University successfully hosted a two-day conference entitled, “Chinese Scholars Debate International Relations” in Beijing, China.

With generous support from the MacArthur Foundation in the United States, the conference attracted scholars from Australia (Griffith University), the United States (American University, Arizona State University, and the University of Nevada), the United Kingdom (Cambridge University), and China (Tsinghua University, Peking University, Nankai University, Fudan University, Nanjing University, and the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences).

Griffith University and Tsinghua University conference attendees

Over 30 well-established scholars held heated debates over core issues in international politics and Chinese foreign policy, focusing on how Chinese scholars’ debates shape and influence Chinese foreign policy. Conference participants discussed how Chinese scholars see the international system and China’s position in the world. They talked about how Chinese scholars view soft power, national interest, global governance, and how they perceive military alliances and the use of force (including Chinese debates over its maritime policy in the South China Sea). One key consensus of all the participants is that the topic of the relationship between international relations (IR) research and policy deserves serious scholarly enquiry. With China rising and its recent foreign policy adjustments, Chinese IR scholars have displayed various voices and perspectives on Chinese foreign policy and international relations. Their rigorous debates and exchanges over these key strategic issues will influence Chinese policy-making through different channels. Concurrently, we are also witnessing more frequent and more intensive personnel exchanges between academics and the policy community. Chinese scholars are exerting more influence and greater impact on foreign policy decision-making and foreign policy analysis.

Griffith University and Tsinghua University conference attendees

This conference is one of the first academic efforts that systemically and comprehensively presented Chinese scholars’ views and debates on IR and Chinese foreign policy. The scholarly outcome from the conference will deepen the mutual understanding between Chinese scholars and the outside world and contribute the studies of Chinese foreign policy and international relations.

Written by Griffith Asia Institute Associate Professor Kai He.