CHINA’S FOREIGN POLICY IN THE POST-COLD WAR ERA THROUGH THE LENS OF THE FIVE PRINCIPLES OF PEACEFUL CO-EXISTENCE

This research pays attention to the gradual development and changing statecraft of China’s foreign policy in the post-Cold War era (1990-2017). The research explores the Five Principles of Peaceful Co-existence as enshrined in China’s 1982 Constitution. The inquiry reveals inconsistencies between China’s foreign policy 'talk' and 'walk.' The research found that the Five Principles fall secondary to China’s national self-interests. Moreover, although the spirit of the Five Principles is prevalent in China’s foreign policy 'talk,' they seem to in fact be used more as 'survival strategies' than mechanisms for common, shared aspirations in international affairs. The country’s behavioral transformation, coupled with its foreign policy 'walk' post the 2007 global economic crisis, can be seen to have changed from being passive to becoming more assertive and confrontational.