Migrants, Markets, Militaries, and Maritime Cooperation: Chinese Motives in Thailand! Abstract: Recent analyses of the foreign policies of Southeast Asian countries with regards to China often focus on the interplay between territorial tensions and economic dependence. In this paper I examine China’s relationship with Thailand, a country with which it has no outstanding territorial disputes and strong historic ties. I dispute the contention that China’s increasingly close relations with Thailand can be traced to their shared regime types or to Chinese support for authoritarian governments. Rather, I argue that China’s pragmatic relations with Thailand are best explained by the two countries’ cultural closeness, China’s pursuit of regional geopolitical influence, and economic considerations. I draw upon Chinese primary sources and other news materials in order to trace the history and development of the SinoThai relationship. I attempt to fit this case study into the existing literature analyzing Chinese foreign policymaking and its increasingly active role in Southeast Asia vis-avis the US.
Timothy Yin is a senior at Georgetown University from Cincinnati, Ohio. At Georgetown, he studies International Politics with a certificate in Religion, Ethics, and World Affairs. He is involved in research related to Chinese politics and society as well as the international relations of East Asia.