Promoting Authoritarianism? Continuity and Change in China's Policy Towards Myanmar (1990–2023).
The global expansion of authoritarianism as a political system has fuelled debate on the role of major authoritarian powers in promoting authoritarianism beyond their borders. China is widely regarded as a significant player in promoting authoritarianism and disrupting democracy abroad. This study e...
| Published in: | Journal of Contemporary China Vol. 35; no. 158; pp. 1413 - 1430 |
|---|---|
| Main Authors: | , |
| Format: | Article |
| Published: |
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Mar2026
|
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | View this record in EBSCOhost |
| fields | @attributes: recordID: 1 pdfLink: plink: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ssf&AN=191630058&site=ehost-live header: @attributes: shortDbName: ssf uiTerm: 191630058 longDbName: Social Sciences Full Text (H.W. Wilson) uiTag: AN controlInfo: bkinfo: jinfo: jid: 10670564 LCC jtl: Journal of Contemporary China issn: 10670564 maglogo: Y pubinfo: dt: Mar2026 vid: 35 iid: 158 pid: 377 pub: Taylor & Francis Ltd artinfo: ui: 191630058 10.1080/10670564.2024.2449057 ppf: 1413 ppct: 17 formats: fmt: – @attributes: type: T db: hlh ui: 191630058 – @attributes: type: P db: hlh ui: 191630058 tig: atl: Promoting Authoritarianism? Continuity and Change in China's Policy Towards Myanmar (1990–2023). aug: au: Saba, Arif Akbarzadeh, Shahram affil: Deakin University, Australia su: China Myanmar Authoritarianism Democracy Military government International relations Dictatorship Political systems National security sug: subj: Authoritarianism Democracy Military government International relations Dictatorship Political systems National security China Myanmar International Affairs Foreign affairs National Security keyword: authoritarianism autocracy promotion promoting authoritarianism rising powers authoritarianism autocracy promotion promoting authoritarianism rising powers ab: The global expansion of authoritarianism as a political system has fuelled debate on the role of major authoritarian powers in promoting authoritarianism beyond their borders. China is widely regarded as a significant player in promoting authoritarianism and disrupting democracy abroad. This study explores this assumption by examining China's policy towards Myanmar across economic, military, political and diplomatic sectors. Covering three decades in bilateral relations, this study traces continuity and change in China's relation vis-à-vis changes in Myanmar's political orientation. Over these three decades, China's policy—spanning Myanmar's transition from military rule to democracy and subsequent return to military rule—reveals remarkable continuity that remains unaffected by the type of political regime in Myanmar. This finding challenges the dominant assumption—pervasive in the literature that informs policymaking in Western capitals—that views China as a leading actor in promoting autocracy. This study reveals a pragmatic strategy in Beijing focused on securing China's security and economic interests, where ideological considerations do not occupy the assumed prime of place. pubtype: Academic Journal doctype: Article src: R language: English refInfo: copyright: @attributes: flag: N holdings: @attributes: islocal: N |
|---|