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Non-Traditional Strategic Initiatives in Chinese-Chilean relations: a case of soft power of China in South America?

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Vol. 51 No. 194 (2019): Septiembre-Diciembre
https://doi.org/10.5354/0719-3769.2019.55677

Abstract

In 2016, Chile was the sixth nation in South America to raise its bilateral ties with China to the status of integral strategic partners (the other five countries are Brazil, Argentina, Venezuela, Peru and Ecuador). In the case of China, these associations involve the development of Non-Traditional Strategic Initiatives (IENs) which go beyond the usual parameters of cooperation in material and military security. IENs arise as forms of strategic cooperation based on the creation of regional centers that seek to solve common problems, incorporating sophisticated technology and strategic complementarity logic. Although, there is no absolute limit between traditional and non-traditional strategic initiatives, as they’re not mutually exclusive. The latter represent the new soft power framework that China tries to establish in South America based on a facilitating role. Understood that, Chile has been one of the countries that has received the largest amount of IENs in the region, amongst them the Astronomy Center of South America, the regional platform of the Chinese currency and the Regional Center of Confucius Institutes for Latin America. This article explores the dynamics behind these initiatives through the case study of the recent relations between China and Chile.

Keywords:

Strategic partnerships, Chinese Foreign Policy, Soft Power, Regional Platforms

Author Biography

Andrés Bórquez, Universidad de Chile

Doctor en Ciencias Políticas y Políticas Internacionales por la Universidad de Fudan, China. Coordinador del Programa de Estudios Chinos del Instituto de Estudios Internacionales de la Universidad de Chile.

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How to Cite
Bórquez, A. (2019). Non-Traditional Strategic Initiatives in Chinese-Chilean relations: a case of soft power of China in South America?. Estudios Internacionales, 51(194), 95–110. https://doi.org/10.5354/0719-3769.2019.55677
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Estudios Internacionales
Institutos de Estudios Internacionales
Universidad de Chile
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