Despite the growing internal social unrest and disparity of economic development, the People’s Republic of China is the third largest world economy and the second largest defense spender. Showing no clear signs of slowing down, China’s rise is seen as both an opportunity and a challenge by the major world powers.

This book examines every aspect of Beijing's strategies, ranging from political, economic and social challenges, to the Taiwan and Hong Kong issues, to the implications of these strategies in terms of China's place within the Asia Pacific, and indeed within the world system.

Written by a stellar line-up of international contributors the book will appeal to students and scholars of Chinese politics, foreign policy, political economy and social policy, and China-watchers alike.

This book examines every aspect of Beijing's stragegies, ranging from political, economic and social challenges, to the Taiwan and Hong Kong issues, to the implications of these strategies in terms of China's place within the Asia Pacific, and indeed within the world system.

Part I: Overview 1. The Rise of China: An Overall Assessment Hsin-Huang Michael Hsiao and Cheng-yi LinPart II: Discourse on the Rise of China 2. China’s Grand Strategy of "Peaceful Rise": A Prelude to a New Cold War? Masako Ikegami 3. The Domestic Origin of China’s Rise and Its International Impact: The Party-State Developmental Syndicate Szu-chien Hsu Part III: Domestic Consequences: Social Unrest and Economic Challenges 4. Growing Social Unrest and Emergent Protest Groups in China Chih-jou Jay Chen 5. China’s Economic Development and Its Challenges To-far Wang Part IV: External Strategies to Asia-Pacific and Implications 6. China’s Policies towards the Asia-Pacific Region: Changing Perceptions of Self and Changing Others’ Perceptions of China?Rosemary Foot 7. The Rise of China and Territorial Disputes Srikanth Kondapalli 8. China’s Policies toward the SCO and ARF: Implications for the Asia-Pacific Region Chien-peng Chung Part V: Regional Reactions to China’s Rise 9. America's Perspective on China’s RiseBruce Cumings 10. Japan's Views on the Rise of China and Its Implications: Bureaucratic Interests and Political Choices Yoshifumi Nakai 11. Beijing's Strategy and Implications for India Vikram Sood 12. The Rise of China and Implications for Southeast Asia: A Philippine Perspective Carolina G. Hernandez 13. Hong Kong Citizens’ Evaluations of the "One Country, Two Systems" Practice: Assessing the Role of Political Support for ChinaTimothy Ka-ying Wong and Shirley Po-san Wan 14. A Rising China and Hu Jintao’s Taiwan Policies Wen-cheng Lin and Cheng-yi Lin Glossary