Chinese Mongolian Diplomatic Relations
Thomas Mikan was selected among the ten shortlisted essays to be published on Asia Centre’s website, following his submission to the Asia Centre Essay Challenge first edition “China Geopolitics”.
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Based on scientific literature and Asian issues press, this paper examines the multifaceted relations between China and its immediate neighbour, Mongolia. It first provides an overview of the evolving dynamics of Sino-Mongolian relations from the mid-20th century to the early 2010s, marked by the Sino-Soviet dispute and Mao Zedong’s irredentist ambitions and the renewal of the bilateral relations after the collapse of the USSR. It then analyses the contemporary challenges shaping the Sino-Mongolian relationship, with particular attention to economic cooperation through the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), which reveals a significant asymmetry in the context of the recent crisis – the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine – which have reconfigured these relations. Lastly, it highlights the inherent fragility of these ties, focusing on tensions surrounding the Dalai Lama and China’s concerns about Mongolia’s Third Neighbour Policy. This essay ultimately demonstrates how Mongolia has become a strategic component of China’s regional ambitions in Northeast Asia while also emphasizing that the relations remain complex, asymmetrical and influenced by broader geopolitical shifts.
Summary of the essay:
- Sino-Mongolian relations from the mid-20th century to the early 2010s
- Chinese Communist views on Mongolia and the Sino-Soviet split
- The collapse of the Soviet Union and the renewal of the Chinese Mongolian relations
- China–Mongolia relations: between strategic cooperation and structural asymmetry
- The 2014 comprehensive strategic partnership and is aftermath
- Economic imbalance: China’s predominant position
- Sino-Mongolian relations amidst crises
- The fragility of the partnership: balancing Chinese influence and Mongolia’s quest for emancipation
- An eternal thorn in China’s side: the Dalai-Lama
- A source of worries for China: the case of Mongolia’s Third Neighbour Policy
Chinese Mongolian Diplomatic Relations: