China-Italy Comprehensive Strategic Partnership： Origin， Evolution， and Prospects

MEN Honghua and JIANG Pengfei

ABSTRACT： The China-Italy strategic partnership requires sustained and closer high-level attention from both sides in a time of crisis. A strong partnership between an emerging economy and a G7 member will help improve China-EU relations and drive progress in BRI implementation. The China-Italy comprehensive partnership， under Beijings broader strategic partnership approach to major powers， is grounded in mutual interests and should be achieved through addressing common challenges. To push the partnership forward， Beijing and Rome should build strategic trust by increasing political dialogue， expand economic cooperation while managing competition and disagreement， and promote cultural and people-to-people exchanges to eliminate misunderstanding and prejudice. At the regional level， better coordination between China， Italy， and the EU is needed to prevent China-EU tensions from impeding China-Italy cooperation. At the global level， policy alignment on global financial reform and environmental and economic governance is required to increase the China-Italy partnerships strategic weight in global affairs.

KEYWORDS： comprehensive strategic partnership， Italy， Belt and Road Initiative， China-EU relations

The U.S. Factor in Germanys China Policy

SUN Keqin and HOU Guanhua

ABSTRACT： The United States has long been the primary factor shaping Germanys foreign relations. The Trump administration views China as Americas chief competitor and calls for a united Western front against Beijings alleged aggression. Although Berlin has hardened its policies toward Beijing under Washingtons pressure， it has also made a hedging bet to seek some measure of strategic independence from Washington. The Germans position themselves in the strategic triangle according to their own assessment of national interests and capabilities. Berlin acknowledges Washingtons primacy in the transatlantic alliance but remains reluctant to take sides in the intensifying China-U.S. competition as it sees a world divided between two superpowers as detrimental to its interests and those of the international community. What Berlin seeks is a strong and independent Europe capable of formulating and implementing a coherent and consistent China policy and of defending its own interests in an increasingly divisive world. The United States will continue to be the most important factor shaping Berlins policy toward Beijing. Against this backdrop， Beijing needs to conduct smart and robust diplomacy to mitigate U.S. strategic pressure on both China and Germany to ensure a stable and progressive partnership between Beijing and Berlin.

KEYWORDS： Germany， China policy， U.S. factor， China-EU relations

Offensive Techno-Nationalism and China-U.S. Tech War

SUN Haiyong

ABSTRACT： Nationalism is arguably the most important political ideology in international politics. Techno-nationalism， as a strain of nationalism that combines elements of economic nationalism and political realism， is an emerging school of thought increasingly shaping national foreign policies and global governance. Different countries practice different versions of techno-nationalism. According to the goals， motives， and effects of national policies， techno-nationalism can be divided into two types： defensive nationalism and offensive nationalism， the latter of which exerts a far greater negative impact on international economics and politics than a positive impact. The technology war launched by President Trump against China represents the most recent resurgence of U.S. techno-nationalism and reflects a hegemonic mindset that seeks to preserve U.S. economic and technological primacy. The Trump administration regards the growth of Chinas high-tech giants and science and technology industries as a grave threat to U.S. national security， and seeks to build a Western alliance to impede the growth of Chinas high-tech industry. Washingtons unilateral techno-nationalism is eroding the foundation of China-U.S. relations， weakening the world economic momentum， and undermining global strategic stability.

KEYWORDS： techno-nationalism， economic nationalism， tech-war， China-U.S. relations

Securitized Sectarian Strife and Middle East Peace： The Case of Saudi Arabia

LIU Zhongmin and Zhao Yuechen

ABSTRACT： Since the outbreak of the Arab Spring in 2011， growing sectarian conflicts within and across national boundaries in the Middle East， especially those between Iran and Saudi Arabia， have rendered the delicate regional peace and security even more precarious. Sectarian issues by themselves are not a major factor shaping a countrys foreign policy until policymakers begin to securitize them. The radicalization of Saudi Arabias foreign policy is an example of securitization of sectarian conflicts. A growing sense of insecurity resulting from changing regional and global security dynamics is driving this securitization process and Riyadhs turn to assertive foreign policy. A radicalized foreign policy driven by securitized sectarianism not only helps the Saudi royal family consolidate its domestic legitimacy and regional leadership but also changes the balance of power between Riyadh and Tehran. But securitization may also drag Saudi Arabia into endless regional proxy conflicts and a foreign policy narrative based on sectarian threat perception may give rise to more regional extremist movements to the detriment of Saudi national security.

KEYWORDS： sectarian strife， securitization， Saudi Arabia， Middle East peace

Religion in Chinas Public Diplomacy： Origin， Evolution， and Prospects

WANG Liwan

ABSTRACT： The Chinese government places a high political confidence in religious communities and encourages them to play a larger role in Chinas public diplomacy. Chinas religious public diplomacy has gone through several developmental stages including “from spontaneity to self-consciousness” and “from prudence to proactiveness.” In practice， Beijings religious public diplomacy takes many forms， such as establishing international institutions for religious exchanges， hosting large international forums， engagement with international religious organizations， and exchanges of high-level visits and regular dialogues. To improve the effectiveness of religious diplomacy， the central government has formulated a legal and regulatory framework， adopted a multi-actor cooperative working method， identified the specific targets， and granted religious communities considerable flexibility. Risk prevention and competition management have become increasingly important as Beijing faces growing risk and competition in its conduct of religious diplomacy. Moving forward， China needs to elevate the level of religious strategic communications， set up more international religious platforms， engage with more actors and targets， and improve risk prevention and control mechanisms. It also needs to promote the growth of the five religions and folk faiths with a view to consolidating Chinas national identification， religious identification， and soft power.

KEYWORDS： public diplomacy， religion， transition， operational mechanism， risk prevention and control

Tourism Diplomacy： Origin， Characteristics， and Evolution

XIANG Wenhui

ABSTRACT： As a new form of international diplomacy， tourism diplomacy is playing an increasingly important role in global affairs. It emerged immediately after the Second World War and has been growing very fast in an increasingly interconnected world. It takes various forms and involves multiple actors， from private citizens to non-state entities. With the role of the state in international diplomacy being diminished， the forms and substance of tourism diplomacy will increasingly be influenced by non-state actors， from private citizens personal will to international organizations missions. China regards tourism diplomacy as an issue of strategic importance and has incorporated it into its overall diplomatic planning. Robust tourism diplomacy is now a strategic asset in Chinas foreign policy. China has abundant tourism resources and has long been an active participant in international tourism diplomacy. Looking forward， Beijings tourism diplomacy will continue to be conducted within Beijings foreign policy of peaceful rise and aimed at promoting a new pattern of state-to-state relations.

KEYWORDS： globalization， tourism， diplomacy， politics， Chinese practice

Biosecurity Governance in Chinas National Security Concept： Logic， Value， and Approach

XIAO Xi and CHEN Xu

ABSTRACT： The incorporation of biosecurity into Chinas national security concept marks Beijings adoption of a holistic approach to national security in a world increasingly threatened by proliferating traditional and nontraditional challenges alike. Amid a still rampaging global pandemic， improving biosecurity governance within this holistic approach gains even more urgency and relevance and is an essential part of Beijings broader effort to improve its overall governance capabilities. Effective responses to biosecurity challenges also require increased international cooperation under stronger great-power leadership. China needs to adopt a multi-pronged and integrative approach to ensure national biosecurity， including establishing a legal framework， increasing bioscience and biotechnology breakthroughs， strengthening institutionalization， and building a community of public health welfare.

KEYWORDS： national security， biosecurity， holistic approach， governance mechanism， community with a shared future

A Study of the American National Biodefense Strategy

WANG Ping

ABSTRACT： The Trump administration issued its National Biodefense Strategy in 2018 to forestall biosecurity risks and build a comprehensive and effective prevention and defense mechanism. According to this strategy， biological threats can be naturally occurring， deliberate， or accidental in origin. The strategy set five goals to counter biological threats and incidents： enabling risk awareness to inform decision-making across the biodefense enterprise; ensuring biodefense enterprise capabilities to prevent bioincidents; ensuring biodefense enterprise preparedness to reduce the impacts of bioincidents; rapidly responding to limit the impacts of bioincidents; and facilitating recovery to restore the community， the economy， and the environment after a bioincident. The strategy seeks to strengthen vertical linkage and horizontal coordination， enhance strategic implementation by promoting innovation and advocating the concept of “One Health，” so as to meet the biological challenges facing the United States. However， the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in the United States in March 2020 has exposed many problems. For example， the “One Health” concept is seriously ignored; the leadership framework of biological risk prevention is inefficient; and innovation is inhibited. The U.S. government will draw lessons from the pandemic and adjust its biodefense strategy， but preserving primacy in biotechnology will remain Washingtons consistent goal.

KEYWORDS： biodefense strategy， biosecurity crisis， bioterrorism， Covid-19