Source (Google maps) Sovereignty is a key concept within international relations. It is commonly used in the real world – it is enshrined within the workings of international institutions and has been a contested concept within the Brexit discourse and Chinese foreign policy. Sovereignty is also very common in International Relations discipline. It is aContinue reading “China’s notion of sovereignty – 独立自主”
Category Archives: Constructivism
Is China socialised in western norms and practices through its engagement with international institutions?
Source: ILO Written by James Lo Since Deng’s decision to open up and engage with the international community in 1978, China has increased their interactions with international institutions. Over the past two decades, scholars such as Johnston and Schweller have argued that China can be socialised through their engagements with international institutions and be integratedContinue reading “Is China socialised in western norms and practices through its engagement with international institutions?”
China, Socialisation and the Legitimacy of Environmental Foreign Policy
Image Source Written by James Lo China’s environmental foreign policy can be split in two stages. From 1980s to early 2000s, socialisation occurred through the interactions between China and international regimes such as the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). However, post 2009, China’s environmental foreign policy was orientated around the idea ofContinue reading “China, Socialisation and the Legitimacy of Environmental Foreign Policy”
Brexit and Constructivism
Image Source (Bankenverband) Written by James Lo In June 2016, UK held a referendum on the membership of EU and 52% of the respondents voted for leave. Two main schools of thought in constructivism, transactionalism and social constructivism, can help explain Brexit. Transactionalism dictates that ‘inter-state and inter-society transactions’[1] will lead to the creation ofContinue reading “Brexit and Constructivism”
IR theory in Practice 