Chinese as an instrument of cultural diplomacy of the People’s Republic of China

Van To PhD in History Postgraduate student of Patrice Lumumba Peoples' Friendship University of Russia 117198, Russia, Moscow, Miklukho-Maklaya str., 6 1194595483@qq.com Other publications by this author

Introduction

The relevance of the research topic is due to: firstly, the growing influence of the People's Republic of China in the international arena; secondly, the acceleration of the process of transformation of the international conjuncture, which consists in the "transit of power" from the United States to the PRC; thirdly, the strengthening of relations between the People's Republic of China and the countries of the collective non-West.

The object of the study is the cultural diplomacy of the People's Republic of China.

The subject of the study is the Chinese language as an instrument of cultural diplomacy of the People's Republic of China.

The purpose of the study is to determine the role of the Chinese language in the cultural diplomacy of the People's Republic of China. To achieve this goal, it is necessary to solve the following tasks:

1.                 To study the process of implementing cultural diplomacy of the People's Republic of China in the context of the "transit of power";

2.                 To determine the role of the Chinese language in the cultural diplomacy of the People's Republic of China in the context of the implementation of the "One Belt, One Road" initiative

Theoretical and methodological basis of the study. This work is based on the theory of neoliberalism, which implies the primacy of international political, economic and cultural cooperation as a factor constraining potential hostilities.

Cultural diplomacy of the People's Republic of China in the context of the "transit of power"

Cultural diplomacy is an integral part of "soft power", a theory proposed by American political scientist Joseph Nye. By itself, "soft power" is based on the principle of "soft" pressure on states in order to achieve the desired result (a similar desire on the part of the state, which is "soft" force). As J. himself writes. Nye: "This second aspect of power – which occurs when one country gets other countries to want that it wants – might be called co-operative or soft power in contrast with the hard or command power of ordering others to do what it wants" (rus. This second aspect [an unconventional aspect in the behavior of great powers] of power, which arises when one country forces other countries to want what it [a great power] wants, can be called co-operative or soft power, which acts as the opposite of hard or command power to order other [countries] to do what they want) J. Nye notes that soft power is just as important an instrument of influence as classical force, especially after the end of the Cold War. J. Nye allocates the following soft power resources:

1. Cultural appeal;

2. Ideology;

3. International institutions ^[1];

According to the author of this article, the "starting point" of soft power can be considered the beginning of the Cold War, a stage in the history of mankind marked by the confrontation of the great powers based on the opposition of the ideologies dominant in them in the face of capitalism and Marxism with its offshoots.

In turn, cultural diplomacy is an integral part of interstate relations. Experts studying cultural diplomacy identify the following tools for implementing this type of interstate relations:

1. Art;

2. Craft;

3. Education;

4. Ideas;

5. History;

6. Science;

7. Medicine;

8. Technology;

9. Religion;

10. Customs;

11. Norms;

12. Trading;

13. Philanthropy;

14. Sports;

15. language;

16. Professions (as skills);

17. hobbies;

18. Various elements of mass media ^[2].

In the context of studying China's cultural diplomacy, it is worth noting that until the rise of the People's Republic of China in the second half of the 20th century, the main elements of China's cultural diplomacy were handicrafts, science, medicine, technology and trade. For many centuries, China remained a very closed state for Europe, where the key players on the world stage of those years were concentrated. The Chinese language could be used by a narrow circle of people directly or indirectly connected with the Middle Kingdom, for example, merchants.

The turning point in the popularization of the Chinese language and the People's Republic of China as such is the beginning of the implementation of Deng Xiaoping's reform and openness policy in China and the end of the Cold War. Let's look at each historical process in more detail.

The policy of reform and openness. After the end of the civil war and the victory of the Communist movement led by Mao Zedong in it, the People's Republic of China remained a very underdeveloped state, plagued by a significant number of significant problems, among which one can highlight the poverty of the population, the destruction in two wars (the civil war and the occupation of China by Japan during World War II), logistical and industrial the state's bases, the lack of necessary up-to-date technologies. All the previously identified problems were solved during the implementation of Deng Xiaoping's promising reforms. The previously mentioned transformations consisted in attracting foreign capital to the PRC. From a Marxist point of view, such a policy can be described as revisionist, but the complication of relations with the "locomotive" of socialist ideas in the face of the USSR contributed to the "thaw" in relations with the West.

The attraction of foreign capital contributed to the concentration of foreign production in the territory of the People's Republic of China, there are many reasons for such an outcome, but in this case it is worth highlighting only one – the cheapness of labor, which helped reduce costs on the part of large and medium-sized capitalists.

According to the World Bank (eng. The World Bank), the GDP of the People's Republic of China in the period 1978-1991 increased from 218.5 billion US dollars to 413.4 billion dollars ^[3]. The flow of foreign direct investment (FDI) in relation to the country's GDP increased to 1.1% in 1991 ^[4]. Since 1978, China's GDP growth has not taken negative values, ranging from 2.2% to 15.2% ^[5].

The result of Deng Xiaoping's policy of reform and openness can be considered the forced attraction of foreign capital to the PRC, which contributed to the elimination of problems that arose after the end of the civil war, however, the People's Republic of China, accumulating the production capacities of the largest players, could not realize its own potential of a great power by the end of the Cold War.

The end of the Cold War. The Cold War, which consisted in the confrontation of former allies in the fight against Nazi Germany and its allies, was built on an ideological basis and was expressed in an arms race, proxy wars and technological confrontation, but this conflict ended not on the battlefield, but inside the Soviet Union, which led to its collapse.

The Soviet Union, being the leader of the "Eastern bloc", was a key actor of cultural diplomacy in the international arena, whose influence was, of course, mainly based on the ideology of Marxism-Leninism, however, other aspects of cultural diplomacy contributed to the communication of the USSR with third countries.

However, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, an entire area of socio-political and economic perception of the world was liberated, which opposed the cultural diplomacy of the United States.

After the end of the Cold War and the fall of the Soviet Union, the international arena maintained a unipolar environment led by the United States for more than 20 years. According to the theory of "transit of power", the only rival of the United States in the international arena may be the People's Republic of China, which exerts significant pressure on the areas of US influence, which include both "hard power" in the face of the armed forces and economic influence, and "soft power", which includes technological influence, cultural attractiveness and international institutes ^[6].  

The role of the Chinese language in the cultural diplomacy of the People's Republic of China in the context of the implementation of the "One Belt, One Road" initiative

As previously indicated, the People's Republic of China at the present stage of the development of international relations is a key rival to the United States of America, which achieved world domination after the end of the Cold War and maintained this position on the world stage for more than 20 years.

The key tools for the implementation of Chinese cultural diplomacy at the present stage are the symbiosis of the One Belt, One Road project and the activities of Confucius institutes.

The activities of the Confucius Institutes include teaching the Chinese language and Chinese culture, training professional staff, conducting tests and exams on Chinese language proficiency, and adapting Chinese media products. The network of Confucius Institutes at the beginning of 2024 includes more than 500 educational organizations.

The activities of Confucius institutes in the territory of the Russian Federation are of great interest. These organizations are represented in the following cities: Moscow, St. Petersburg, Blagoveshchensk, Vladivostok, Volgograd, Irkutsk, Kazan, Novosibirsk, Ryazan, Tomsk, Ulan-Ude, Yaroslavl, etc. ^[7]. The first Confucius Institute in Russia was opened in 2007 on the basis of the Russian State University for the Humanities (RGGU) in Moscow ^[8].

At the same time, the number of Confucius institutes in the United States is steadily decreasing: According to the National Association of Scholars of the United States, the number of Confucius institutes in the United States has decreased from 118 to 10 institutions. However, despite the termination of the activities of the previously designated organizations in the United States, the influence of Chinese cultural diplomacy has not decreased due to the preservation of educational programs of Confucius institutes under a different "brand" ^[9]. Based on the previously cited data, it can be concluded that Confucius institutes are an effective tool of cultural diplomacy of the People's Republic of China, as indicated by the policy pursued by the United States of America to ban their activities in the country.

 The Belt and Road Initiative, which aims to build optimal trade routes connecting the People's Republic of China and European countries, was announced in 2013. Chinese President Xi Jinping ^[10]. This initiative mainly consists in reducing the cost of transporting goods produced on the territory of the Middle Kingdom, for which two transport corridors were created: the Economic Belt of the New Silk Road (eng. New Silk Road Economic Belt) (land) and Maritime Silk Road of the XXI century (English 21st Century Maritime Silk Road) ^[11]. However, in addition to the economic component, cultural exchange between the peoples of the States participating in the implementation of the initiative also plays an important role.

Based on the information on the official Internet portal of the Belt and Road, it can be seen that more than 1,000 student mobility projects were implemented in the context of an initiative by Chinese educational organizations at the time of 2016 ^[12]. More than 300 thousand Chinese students study in the territory of the participating states of the initiative, at the same time, more than 200 thousand foreign students study in the territory of the People's Republic of China ^[13].

It is important to note that the Russian Federation occupies one of the leading positions in cooperation with the PRC in the scientific field: according to the Vedomosti information portal, in 2023, more than 37 thousand Chinese students studied in Russia, at the same time, the number of Russian students studying in the PRC continues to increase after the end of restrictions, caused by the COVID-19 epidemic: in the period 2022-2023, the number of students from the Russian Federation reached 1,640 people, which is 30% of the indicators of the previous academic year ^[14].

In the context of the Belt and Road initiative, one of the priorities is given to art, cultural and technological exchange: in order to promote Chinese culture and the Chinese language as an instrument of its perception, the leadership of the People's Republic of China is permanently building up partnerships with various administrative and territorial units of states by building up a network of twin cities, organizing exhibitions of classical Chinese culture, and producing joint with other states of films and cartoons, video game production. 

Thus, it can be concluded that the Chinese language plays one of the most important roles in the cultural diplomacy of the People's Republic of China at the present stage, the main instruments of which are the synergy of the "One Belt, One Road" initiative and the activities of Confucius institutes abroad.

Conclusion

Summing up all the above, we can conclude that cultural diplomacy has been an integral part of interstate relations throughout the history of mankind; the "soft power" proposed by American political scientist Joseph Nye, according to the author, originated in its usual perception only during the Cold War; the beginning of Deng Xiaoping's policy of reform and openness and the end of the Cold War it can rightfully be considered turning points in the popularization of the Chinese language, Chinese culture and the People's Republic of China as such; in the context of the theory of "transit of power", the key rival of the United States in the international arena is the PRC, capable of resisting all types of "power" of the United States; the key tools for the implementation of Chinese cultural diplomacy at the present stage is the symbiosis of the "One Belt" initiative – one way" and the activities of the Confucius Institutes.