Strategic culture, a medicine against nationalism? A case study on the effects of nationalism and strategic culture on conflict in China and Japan
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2015-07-17
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en
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Abstract
In 1994, Stephen van Evera described under which conditions nationalism can lead to
conflict in and between states. Since the Tiananmen Square student protests in 1989,
China has been increasingly engaged in nationalistic foreign policy, with its most
important and powerful neighbour Japan responding with an equal discourse in
response. Contentious issues such as the reunification with Taiwan, the re-emergence of China as a powerful actor in East Asia and territorial disputes in the South China Sea
with Japan (and others) stand at the heart of nationalism in the region, which on the
basis of Van Evera’s theory would lead us to suspect that conflict is highly likely, but so
far this threat has been averted through logrolling, suasion and mediation. What can
explain this relative calmness? This thesis aims to contribute to improving Van Evera’s theory by firstly, testing its causal assumptions, and secondly, by embedding a theory of strategic culture (as described by Alastair Johnston in 1995) and taking into account the mediating effects of strategic culture on the benign and malign effects of nationalism. This new model, which will be called Van Evera+, aims at a better understanding of current Sino-Japanese relations.
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Faculteit der Managementwetenschappen