China's Search for International Authority
Dr Jason Young, Director of the New Zealand Contemporary China Research Centre and Associate Professor in the School of History, Philosophy, Political Science and International Relations at Victoria University of Wellington
Thursday, 1 June 2023 8:00pm
Wairarapa
Rosewood, 417 Queen Street, Masterton
Dr Jason Young is the guest speaker and his talk considers China's great power status.
President Xi Jinping, in his 2023 New Year address, said:
“Going forward, China will be a country that performs miracles through hard work.”
He quoted Su Shi, a renowned Chinese poet, “Charge at the toughest and aim at the farthest.” It means taking on the biggest challenges and going after the most ambitious goals.
Dr Young says: “China under Xi Jinping has shifted toward a more assertive and proactive expression of the nation as a great power.”
This shift, he explains, is underpinned by a transformative project to create ‘a strong nation with a socialist culture’, to reject Western values, promote Chinese-style modernity, and with limited tolerance for ethnic or ideological diversity..
“This nation-building project is coupled with a stronger stance on a broad range of international issues, including those considered internal affairs such as Hong Kong and Taiwan, and in more proactive positions on relations with the United States, Russia (especially around Ukraine) and the developing world”.
Jason Young says, “This project for China has caused considerable unease in many nations.”
His talk considers China’s expressions of its great power status and argues that international responses affirm China’s great power status but contest its claims to international authority.
Dr Jason Young can read, write and speak Mandarin, learning the language during four years of study at Fu Jen and Tunghai Universities. He gained his PhD in 2010.
His research focuses on Chinese politico-economic and institutional reform, Chinese foreign policy and New Zealand-China relations. Jason is the author of China’s Hukou System (Palgrave) 2013 and a number of journal articles and chapters in both English and Chinese.
He was the recipient of a 2013 Royal Society of New Zealand Marsden Fast Start to investigate investment in rural China. His current research focuses on Chinese international relations writing. He travels regularly to China and Asia.
Dr Jason Young is the guest speaker and his talk considers China's great power status.
President Xi Jinping, in his 2023 New Year address, said:
“Going forward, China will be a country that performs miracles through hard work.”
He quoted Su Shi, a renowned Chinese poet, “Charge at the toughest and aim at the farthest.” It means taking on the biggest challenges and going after the most ambitious goals.
Dr Young says: “China under Xi Jinping has shifted toward a more assertive and proactive expression of the nation as a great power.”
This shift, he explains, is underpinned by a transformative project to create ‘a strong nation with a socialist culture’, to reject Western values, promote Chinese-style modernity, and with limited tolerance for ethnic or ideological diversity..
“This nation-building project is coupled with a stronger stance on a broad range of international issues, including those considered internal affairs such as Hong Kong and Taiwan, and in more proactive positions on relations with the United States, Russia (especially around Ukraine) and the developing world”.
Jason Young says, “This project for China has caused considerable unease in many nations.”
His talk considers China’s expressions of its great power status and argues that international responses affirm China’s great power status but contest its claims to international authority.
Dr Jason Young can read, write and speak Mandarin, learning the language during four years of study at Fu Jen and Tunghai Universities. He gained his PhD in 2010.
His research focuses on Chinese politico-economic and institutional reform, Chinese foreign policy and New Zealand-China relations. Jason is the author of China’s Hukou System (Palgrave) 2013 and a number of journal articles and chapters in both English and Chinese.
He was the recipient of a 2013 Royal Society of New Zealand Marsden Fast Start to investigate investment in rural China. His current research focuses on Chinese international relations writing. He travels regularly to China and Asia.
Membership
NZIIA membership is open to anyone interested in understanding the importance of global affairs to the political and economic well-being of New Zealand.