China's Rising Foreign Ministry - (Studies in Asian Security) by Dylan M H Loh (Hardcover)

About the Book

"China's rise and its importance to international relations as a discipline-defining phenomenon is well recognized. Yet when scholars analyze China's foreign relations, they typically focus on Beijing's military power, economic might, or political leaders. As a result, most traditional assessments miss a crucial factor: China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA). In China's Rising Foreign Ministry, Dylan M.H. Loh upends conventional understandings of Chinese diplomacy by underlining the importance of the ministry and its diplomats in contemporary Chinese foreign policy. The book explains how MOFA gradually became the main interface of China's foreign policy and the primary vehicle through which the idea of 'China' is produced, articulated, and represented on the world stage. Through a multi-year and multi-sited fieldwork study of China's MOFA, this groundbreaking book investigates the practices and experiences of the actors that produce diplomacy and documents the ministry's evolution into one of the most significant institutions in China's rise. A theoretically innovative and ambitious book, China's Rising Foreign Ministry contributes an original reading of Chinese foreign policy, with wide-ranging implications for international relations. By shedding light on the dynamics of Chinese diplomacy and how assertiveness is constructed, Loh provides readers with a comprehensive appraisal of China's foreign ministry and the role it performs in China's re-emergence"--

Book Synopsis

China's rise and its importance to international relations as a discipline-defining phenomenon is well recognized. Yet when scholars analyze China's foreign relations, they typically focus on Beijing's military power, economic might, or political leaders. As a result, most traditional assessments miss a crucial factor: China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA). In China's Rising Foreign Ministry, Dylan M.H Loh upends conventional understandings of Chinese diplomacy by underlining the importance of the ministry and its diplomats in contemporary Chinese foreign policy. Loh explains how MOFA gradually became the main interface of China's foreign policy and the primary vehicle through which the idea of 'China' is produced, articulated, and represented on the world stage. This theoretically innovative and ambitious book offers an original reading of Chinese foreign policy, with wide-ranging implications for international relations. By shedding light on the dynamics of Chinese diplomacy and how assertiveness is constructed, Loh provides readers with a comprehensive re-appraisal of China's foreign ministry and the role it performs in China's re-emergence.

Review Quotes

"China's Rising Foreign Ministry is a wonderfully rich account of the practice of China's foreign policy. It moves beyond a state-centric model to examine the individuals implanting Chinese foreign policy and convincingly pushes back against the notion that the foreign ministry is not a critical actor in Chinese foreign policy. Its fascinating interview and ethnographic data aptly demonstrate that Chinese assertiveness has increasingly come to be represented by Chinese diplomats and the foreign ministry."--Ketian Zhang, Perspectives on Politics

"Loh has done commendable research by giving practice a 'performative nuance' to 'better account for change and resistance in the field, ' to show how PRC diplomats 'represent state and Party interests to international audiences.' Overall, this book is an important contribution to the practice turn in IR theory. It is an essential addition to postgraduate courses on IR and Chinese foreign policy."--Huiyun Feng, International Relations of the Asia-Pacific

"Loh's careful analysis is a thoughtful and thought-provoking addition to the study of PRC politics and international relations. China's Rising Foreign Ministry will surely be of interest and utility for academic and practitioner communities."--Courtney J. Fung, China Quarterly

"Dylan M.H Loh makes a stunning contribution to recent diplomatic studies and International Relations (ir) scholarship. This contribution is both theoretical, driven by the book's careful application and development of Bourdieusian practice theory; and empirically, as Loh moves beyond the predominant focus of existing (practice theoretical) scholarship on Western case studies by in detail exploring the diplomatic practices that make (and are made by) the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China."--Kristin Eggeling, The Hague Journal of Diplomacy

"China's Rising Foreign Ministry provides a rich, readable assessment of China's evolving diplomacy in Southeast Asia and beyond." --ASEAN Wonk

"China's Rising Foreign Ministry will surely become a key reference for all those that are interested in understanding China's international behaviour and the reaction to it, especially in the Southeast Asian regional context." --Andrea Ghiselli, Cambridge Review of International Affairs

"Dylan M.H Loh persuasively argues against traditional state-centric understandings of China's rise and its place in the international system, calling attention to the marked growth in budget and influence of its Ministry of Foreign Affairs in ways that are suitable to both Chinese public opinion and to the country's top leadership." --June Teufel Dreyer, University of Miami

"Dylan M.H Loh's historically in-depth and up-to-date case study provides a unique institutional perspective to explain China's increasingly assertive foreign policy. A timely addition to the scholarship of China's international behavior, this book is strongly recommended for those who want to learn about Chinese foreign policy and foreign relations as well as contemporary international geopolitics." --Suisheng Zhao, University of Denver

"This remarkable book reveals the inner workings of the Chinese Foreign Ministry and demonstrates the profound significance of practice theory in unraveling the complex web of social dynamics that have propelled China towards becoming an assertive global power. Dylan M.H Loh convincingly shows that to understand China's ascent, one cannot overlook the diplomats whose everyday activities embody a rising China." --Rebecca Adler-Nissen, University of Copenhagen

"This volume boasts an impressive collection of data and presentation of interesting case studies of China's assertive and cooperative behavior in Southeast Asia.... Recommended."--G. A. McBeath, CHOICE

About the Author

Dylan M.H Loh is Assistant Professor of Public Policy and Global Affairs at Nanyang Technological University (NTU). He tweets @dylanloh.