How powerful is China? Is China powerful enough to change the world? This book distinguishes between China's obviously growing economic, political and military resources, and how they are translated into actual influence over other states' choices and policies. It investigates China's influence on the small and weak developing countries in East and South Asia, where China ought to have the biggest influence. It shows that China tends to try to gain the support of these countries without forcing them to change their preferences or to act against their own interests, but how much it succeeds is determined more by how these target countries' policy-makers react and by their domestic political considerations, than by how skilful Chinese politicians or investors are. China's influence even over these weakest states is not easily achieved, suggesting that China has more difficulty exercising its newfound power in the world than we assume.

1: Evelyn Goh: Introduction
2: Michael A. Glosny: Chinese Assessments of China's Influence in Developing Asia
Part One: Small Developing Asian States
3: Evelyn Goh and David Steinberg: Myanmar's Management of China's Influence: From Mutual Benefit to Mutual Dependence
4: Cheng Guan Ang: China's Influence over Vietnam in War and Peace
5: Aileen S. P. Baviera: The Domestic Mediations of China's Influence in the Philippines
6: Neil Devotta: China's Influence in Sri Lanka: Negotiating Development, Authoritarianism, and Regional Transformation
Part Two: Issues and Institutions
7: Ralf Emmers: China's Influence in the South China Sea and the Failure of Joint Development
8: Pichamon Yeophantong: China's Hydropower Expansion and Influence Over Environmental Governance in Mainland Southeast Asia
9: James Reilly: Chinese Sunshine: Beijing's Influence on Economic Change in North Korea
10: John D. Ciorciari: China's Influence in Asian Monetary Affairs
11: Rosemary Foot and Rana Siu Inboden: China's Influence on Developing Asian States During the Creation of the United Nations Human Rights Council, 2005-7
Part Three: Extensions
12: Scott L. Kastner: Analysing Chinese Influence: Challenges and Opportunities
13: Evelyn Goh: Conclusion

Edited by Evelyn Goh , Professor of Strategic Policy Studies and Director of Research at the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, Australian National University

Evelyn Goh is the Shedden Professor of Strategic Policy Studies at the Australian National University, where she is also the Director of Research at the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre.