Suchergebnisse

China first became an active and visible player in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) in the 1950s, when it worked together with the region to stop a possible Soviet invasion of Poland in October 1956. This strong relationship was later dismantled due to the Sino-Soviet split and the volatile domestic situation in China (the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution). It is only since 2012 that China has become active in the region again, now as an emerging global power with a strategy and new investment initiatives in play: first the 16 + 1 framework and now the Belt and Road Initiative as well. Does China consider the CEE countries to be its new playground, or test area, within the EU? Or does it instead see the region as a gatekeeper that can help it get a foot in the door to the West? China has a vision, a pragmatic approach and political will, but the implementation of this vision has been weak. While several existing mechanisms offer new potential, they have so far only been partially exploited, due to the different business mentalities of both sides, as well as many other obstacles. China is opening up opportunities for CEE, but the latter must be better prepared for China's new activities.

This highly individual study is the first-ever attempt to describe Polish Sinology, Polish Sinologists and their individual choices, both vocational and social or political. The author, as an insider, uses interviews with some of the most important representatives of Polish Sinology (mainly of the older generation). He proposes individual systematization, fragmenting the history of the "real socialism" era (1950-1989) and after the democratic breakthrough of 1989 in many chapters, consisting of both collective and individual. Among the major findings is that the initial small circle of highly specialized individuals has recently been quickly growing, and so has the diversification within it. While until 1989 the career choices in this field were limited, basically an official (diplomatic or state bureaucratic) career was the only option, but after this threshold many new windows of opportunities were opened, which included for example personal choices like studying in Mainland China or Taiwan,, opening a business there, creating a website or even opening up a study center.Mongolian Journal of International Affairs Vol.19 2014: 87-115