China Engages the Arctic

In an article in Asian Security, “China engages the Arctic: a great power in a regime complex,” Kathryn Lavelle, Liselotte Odgaard and I examine how China pursues its interests in the Arctic.

Specifically, we how and when it seeks to work through the existing “regime complex” versus engaging in bilateral cooperation with Arctic states. We find that China relies on global regimes regarding navigational issues, prefers bilateral cooperation for resource extraction, and prioritizes Arctic regimes to pursue scientific research. As a great power, China can and does use institutional complexity to its advantage.

Read the article here.