We propose and test empirically a theory describing the endogenous formation and persistence of mega-states, using China as an example. We suggest that the relative timing of the emergence of agricultural societies, and their distance from each other, set off a race between their autochthonous...

This chapter contributes to comparative regionalism studies by exploring the Belt and Road Initiative (BR) as an emerging regionalism project. We start by stating a need for broad conceptual frameworks to study the BR dynamics and consider the “world of regions” framework as such an...

Measures of bilateral political relations are typically long-memory (fractionally integrated) processes. Appropriate inference and interpretation of this property hinges on the underlying reasons behind it. There are three possible explanations: (i) mechanical aggregation, (ii) bilateral...

U.S. lawmakers and analysts see China's efforts to control much of the South China Sea as a serious threat, endangering regional security, freedom of navigation, and the liberal world order. This paper finds that political leaders and experts exaggerate the dangers of China's South China Sea...

COVID-19 is provoking a major reorientation of American and European foreign policy. At the heart of this is their changing relationship with China. The pandemic has given rise to fears of a new Cold War, which are based on out-of-date assumptions and a misunderstanding of China’s motivations....

The donation and sale of vaccines are diplomatic tools that have impact well beyond health policies. Having been more successful than Western capitals in controlling Covid-19 at home, Beijing then felt confident about engaging in the distribution and sale of shots around the world. May Chinese...

After the Soviet breakup, Central Asia has gained importance for several States because of its geographical location and abundance of hydrocarbon reserves. These hydrocarbon reserves are located mainly in three countries: Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. Each of them has taken different...

The New Silk Road, or actually the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), is a Chinese concept aimed at facilitating international trade between China, Europe and Africa as well as building a new international economic order and security system. More than 60 countries belonging to various economic...

Informal eldercare is often supplied by family members, more so in Asia than in the West. Children and their parents as well as members of adjacent generations linked by marriage (in-laws) are modeled as self-interested agents offering or responding to material incentives. A first implication...

This paper estimates trends in absolute poverty in urban China from 1988 to 2002 using the Chinese Household Income Project (CHIP) surveys. Poverty incidence curves are plotted, showing that poverty has fallen markedly during the period regardless of the exact location of the poverty line....