부산대학교 도서관

Since President Xi took office, Chinahas adopted a proactive approach to foreign policy, and its foreign aid policy has become ambitious. However, the existing literature has neither examined the changes in China’s foreign aid policy nor proposed a theory-based analytic framework. Usingthe neoclassical realism, this articleconsiders the changes in China’s foreign aid policy from President Hu to President Xi and explores the challenges to the current Chinese aid policies. The article argues that although China’s rise constitutes a systemic factor in global politics, making China more confident and capable ofoffering foreign aid, the leader’s perceptionsdirectly determine China’s foreign aid policy. Therefore, the differences in Hu’s and Xi’s subjective perceptions of China’s relative power positionexplain the shifts in China’s foreign aid policy. Xi has redefined China’s national identity and interests, establishing an ambitious vision and strategy, and has emphasized institutional reforms. This has resulted in China’s foreign aid policy emphasizing justice, elevating the status of foreign aid in China’s diplomacy and changing the Chinese foreign aid management system. Nevertheless, President Xi’s aid blueprint faces several challenges. China needs to avoid its foreign aid efforts being offset by its other diplomatic actions, improve its aid management system, and pay attention to the low public support for foreign aid.
Since President Xi took office, Chinahas adopted a proactive approach to foreign policy, and its foreign aid policy has become ambitious. However, the existing literature has neither examined the changes in China’s foreign aid policy nor proposed a theory-based analytic framework. Usingthe neoclassical realism, this articleconsiders the changes in China’s foreign aid policy from President Hu to President Xi and explores the challenges to the current Chinese aid policies. The article argues that although China’s rise constitutes a systemic factor in global politics, making China more confident and capable ofoffering foreign aid, the leader’s perceptionsdirectly determine China’s foreign aid policy. Therefore, the differences in Hu’s and Xi’s subjective perceptions of China’s relative power positionexplain the shifts in China’s foreign aid policy. Xi has redefined China’s national identity and interests, establishing an ambitious vision and strategy, and has emphasized institutional reforms. This has resulted in China’s foreign aid policy emphasizing justice, elevating the status of foreign aid in China’s diplomacy and changing the Chinese foreign aid management system. Nevertheless, President Xi’s aid blueprint faces several challenges. China needs to avoid its foreign aid efforts being offset by its other diplomatic actions, improve its aid management system, and pay attention to the low public support for foreign aid.