The rise of China’s status: a relational approach

Abstract

To what extent has China’s status risen, and how? Despite the pivotal role of China’s status in shaping its foreign policy and global phenomena, there is no scholarly consensus on where China is ranked in the global hierarchy and how it attains such a position. Building on empirical studies that use diplomatic exchanges and extending them by employing social network analysis, this article provides the first systematic analysis of China’s standing in the global status hierarchy. My findings show that China’s status has experienced significant growth with a substantial increase in the number of diplomatic recognitions received. While the United States garnered more recognition than China, the gap between the two has narrowed significantly over the last three decades, and, when considering the quality of diplomatic ties, China’s status even surpassed that of the United States by 2005. Additionally, my findings suggest that both exogenous and endogenous factors worked in concert to elevate China’s status. The rise of China’s status did not occur automatically with its economic or military capabilities’ growth. Instead, relational dynamics were also important: recognition from the most prestigious country, the United States, in the 1970s triggered a domino effect, prompting other countries to recognize China. Furthermore, China’s emphasis on aligning with the developing Third World enables it to uniquely position itself in diplomatic networks by engaging with both well-connected and marginalized countries. This diplomatic portfolio, in turn, equips China with significant social and brokerage power, suggesting that its influence is far more formidable than its material capabilities alone would imply.