Publication

This paper analyzes the factors behind China's major policy reorientation toward a proactive engagement of its neighbors in the political, economic as well as security dimensions. It discusses the impact of China's focus on domestic economic development and growth on its choice of regional policy. The paper argues that strategic pressure from the US in China's peripheral regions have pushed the government to consolidate its strategic backyard. The "pull" effect on China's neighboring states is analyzed in detail, and it is argued that China's regional policy is part of China's grand strategy of ensuring its uninterrupted rise.