Treaty Of Alliance Research Articles

The balance of sea power in the early modern era: The Anglo-Dutch Wars (1652–1674)

The balance of power is among the foundational principles in international relations. This principle, however, has been analysed mostly in relation to land powers on the European continent, while the historiography has failed to appropriately recognize its naval aspect so far. This article compares the English and Dutch sea powers or fleets during the three Anglo-Dutch Wars (1652–1674). Warships or ships of the line were the main instruments of naval warfare, and hence key to any measurements of sea power. Detailed tables of the fleets with the number of warships and guns for the major engagements show the balance of sea power at the time. Attaining and maintaining the balance of (sea) power in the early modern era was not just an abstract idea, but also an interactive process, based on numerical analysis. The author argues that there was a real or naval balance of sea power between the fleets or alliances of fleets; that the balance of sea power was acknowledged in the international alliance treaties; and that the balance of sea power became an element of early modern political discourse.

Foreign Policy and Public Support for War: New Experimental Evidence

ABSTRACT This paper investigates how foreign policy decisions shape US public support for military intervention on behalf of a state that is under attack. In particular, we consider two key questions. First, does a defender’s foreign policy behavior shape the public’s willingness to defend it? Second, what impact do US “hands-tying” policies, including alliance treaties, public threats, and tripwire forces, have on public support? We use a survey experiment to shed new light on these questions. Our experiment indicates that defender foreign policy matters; the public is more likely to support defenders that have contributed to previous US military operations, and less likely to support defenders that provoked their attackers. We also find that US hands-tying policies have a significant effect on public opinion. Interestingly, these impacts are statistically indistinguishable from one another; no one hands-tying policy is superior as a means of bolstering public demand for war.

Manipulating Public Beliefs about Alliance Compliance: A Survey Experiment

Abstract Conventional wisdom on alliances proposes that leaders comply with alliances because the public opposes violating alliance commitments. However, this assumes that the public can easily judge whether or not a particular policy violates an alliance treaty. This article challenges this assumption and develops a theory that elites have the opportunity to shape public understanding as to whether an action violates an alliance treaty. It shows that while alliance commitments continue to have an important impact on public opinion, signals from unified elites can significantly reduce public pressure to support an ally by arguing that the alliance treaty does not create a legal obligation to intervene. In a pair of experiments on large samples of American adults, we found that a unified signal from the president and the Senate opposition leader can significantly reduce support for sending troops to the embattled ally. Consistent with elite cueing theory, the president’s ability to move public opinion in this manner is eliminated if the Senate opposition leader disagrees with his argument.

We Are Brothers but Not Allies: The Sino-DPRK Alliance Revisited

It is widely noted that China maintains a "special relationship" with North Korea, which is best epitomized by the Sino-DPRK Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance that the two countries signed in July 1961. However, in the post-Cold War era, the raison d'être of this alliance treaty has been challenged. Against this backdrop, this paper traces China's evolving interpretations of the Sino-DPRK friendship treaty. By investigating the process behind the signing of the treaty, it argues that Beijing signed an "alliance treaty" with Pyongyang to win over the latter in the context of the Sino-Soviet split. However, as China sought to improve its relations with Western powers, the Sino-DPRK friendship treaty became increasingly burdensome to Beijing. Thus, Beijing began to dilute the alliance nature of the treaty by no longer publicly affirming its security obligation toward Pyongyang. After Deng Xiaoping came to power in China, the treaty was found to be incompatible with Beijing's newly promulgated foreign policy principle of non-alignment. To address this problem, Beijing ultimately reformulated the nature of Sino-DPRK relations and reinterpreted the Sino-DPRK friendship treaty—that is, China is not an ally of North Korea, and the Sino-DPRK friendship treaty carries only symbolic meaning without casus foederis. Based on these analyses, this paper claims that the security obligation of the Sino-DPRK friendship treaty is no longer functional.

대내·외 정책 변화 요인이 추동한 북·러관계 연구

State relations accelerate the close cooperation and promotion when national interests coincide. The signing of the North Korea-Russia alliance treaty and Kim's first and second visits to Russia served as a driving force when domestic and foreign policy changes interact with national interests. If the China-Soviet conflict and the strengthening of the South Korea-U.S.-Japan alliance led to the 1961 North Korea-Soviet Alliance Treaty, changes in the environment of the international order, including the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the ROK’s northern policy and Putin's equidistant foreign policy, led to the signing of the 2002 North Korea-Russia Friendship Treaty. A comparative analysis of Kim's first and second visits to Russia enabled the derivation of facilitating factors that accelerated the close relationship between North Korea and Russia and challenging factors. This shows that under the international order dominated by power, close contact is accelerated when national interests, such as domestic and foreign environmental factors of North Korea and Russia, namely, domestic political system (leadership), diversification of economy and diplomacy, and securing resources. It is time for strategic thinking that can bring maximum effect with minimal effort through stable situation management of the impact of the US-China-Russia mutual state relations variable. Amid expectations of changes in domestic and foreign exchange environments, it is necessary to closely analyze the impact of North Korea-Russia relations on security in Northeast Asia and devise countermeasures while strengthening the South Korea-U.S.-Japan alliance.

THE RUSSIAN-SWEDISH WAR OF 1741-1743 IN THE ASSESSMENTS OF THE BRITISH AMBASSADORS IN RUSSIA

The article covers the important aspects of the Russian-Swedish war of 1741-1743, which has attracted little attention in Russian historiography. The war was waged over three campaigns, witnessed by two British ambassadors in Russia, Edward Finch and Cyril Wyche. Based on the diplomatic correspondence of the British ambassadors, previously unexplored in the Russian historical science, the author analyzes the information which they received from high-ranking Russian officials, including commanders of the troops, and then passed on to London. In particular, it concerned the state of the Russian armed forces on the eve of the war with Sweden. The diplomats noted and informed their superiors about the weaknesses of the Russian navy. Keeping track of the course of the war, the ambassadors briefed the Secretary of State about its causes, the main being the desire of the Swedes to abrogate the conditions of the Nishtad peace and regain the territories lost during the Northern War of 1700-1721. Both ambassadors acknowledged the courage and heroism shown by the Russian soldiers in battles with the enemy, as well as their humane treatment of the captured Swedes. At the same time, they drew attention to the manifestations of cruelty inflicted by irregular troops who participated in the raids in Finland. The dispatches of the ambassadors also reveal the stance taken by a number of countries towards the conflict between Russia and Sweden: hostile on the part of France and generally benevolent on the part of official London, which did not want to spoil relations with the Russian court on the eve of the conclusion of the 1742 Treaty of Alliance. Other documents of indisputable interest are manifestos (included in the correspondence of diplomats) addressed by the Swedish king and the Russian empress to the population of the border territories and aimed at showing goodwill towards the enemy troops. The facts about the Russian-Swedish war presented by the British ambassadors and analyzed in the article fill the existing gap in one of the episodes of Russian-Swedish relations in the middle of the eighteenth century.

Sino-Soviet Relations in the Early 1950s - Late 1960s

From 1950 to 1960, Sino-Soviet relations transitioned from a close alliance to an eventual split. This change was influenced by various factors, including the Sino-Soviet Treaty of Friendship, Alliance, and Mutual Assistance, as well as the Korean War. Despite sharing communist ideologies, the two countries had fundamental differences in their developmental objectives, which led to irreparable divisions and an ultimate severance of ties. Additionally, the personal characteristics of the leaders further exacerbated suspicions and military tensions between the two nations. In the early 1950s, the Chinese Communist Partys (CCP) policies were primarily focused on safeguarding its domestic interests. Despite underlying suspicions and compromises, China and the Soviet Union formalized their alliance through the Sino-Soviet Treaty of Friendship, Alliance, and Mutual Assistance. Chinas military involvement in Korea in 1953 further strengthened the relationship, ushering in a honeymoon period for the alliance. However, the CCP harbored a long-term objective of establishing itself as an independent entity free from external control. The underlying motives and imbalances inherent in Soviet aid began to erode the CCPs trust in the USSR. In 1956, the 20th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) marked the onset of ideological divergences between the two nations. Subsequent internal conflicts within the socialist bloc and disagreements on how to resolve them prompted China to scrutinize the Soviet Unions true intentions and its great power chauvinism. These evolving dynamics progressively widened the divide between China and the Soviet Union, accentuating pre-existing tensions and eventually culminating in the dissolution of their alliance.

Ranavalona I of Madagascar: African Jezebel or Patriot?

The conventional historical interpretation of the early nineteenth-century history of Madagascar is that it reflected two contrasting reigns, that of King Radama I (r. 1810–28), and that of his successor, Queen Ranavalona I (r. 1828–61). The dominant view of Radama is that he was an enlightened, progressive, and pro-European monarch who welcomed embassies from British-ruled Mauritius from 1816, signed a treaty of alliance with Britain in 1820, and within less than a decade banned slave exports, accepted a Resident British political agent at his court, encouraged a London Missionary Society mission in Madagascar, and with British military assistance quickly subjected the entire island to his rule. By contrast, Ranavalona, Radama's senior wife, was illiterate and, guided by superstition and ancestral beliefs, unpredictable and brutal. Upon Radama's untimely death in mid-1828, Ranavalona illicitly seized the throne, established a tyrannical administration, and pursued retrograde illiberal, xenophobic, and anti-Christian policies. This article critically examines the origins of the conventional interpretation of Ranavalona and argues for the rationality of core economic and military policies she adopted aimed at safeguarding Madagascar from European imperial domination.

Study on the Mao Zedong’s Visit to the Soviet Union and the Signing of the Sino-Soviet Treaty of Friendship, Alliance and Mutual Assistance

Study on the Mao Zedong’s Visit to the Soviet Union and the Signing of the Sino-Soviet Treaty of Friendship, Alliance and Mutual Assistance

Preventing Coups and Seeking Allies: The Demand and Supply of Alliances for Coup-Proofing Regimes

Prevailing accounts of alliance formation emphasize either external threats or domestic politics, without an explicit consideration of how the two factors might interact. Instead, this paper theorizes about a specific type of interaction: coup-prevention strategies in nondemocratic regimes and external threats. Through quantitative analyses using the Alliance Treaty Obligations and Provisions (ATOP) and the State Security Forces (SSF) data, we find that “coup-proofing” reduces the probability of alliance formation when potential allies are under high external threat and that this effect is driven by the coup-proofing regime’s reduced capability to defend their allies, rather than the regime’s increased vulnerability to aggression. Furthermore, we find evidence for the interactive relationship at the negotiation stage of alliance formation. Upon entering an alliance, a coup-proofing regime facing a higher level of external threat offers more policy concessions to the ally, whereas an ally under higher threat could make fewer concessions to the coup-proofing regime. Our study highlights the way nondemocratic domestic political institutions can interact with external threat to shape states’ alliance behavior.

RULES FOR THE RECEPTION OF EXILES IN THE TREATY BETWEEN SINOPE AND HERACLEA PONTICA (I.SINOPE 1)

AbstractThis article analyses a clause of the alliance treaty between Sinope and Heraclea Pontica concerning the exiles of both cities (I.Sinope 1, lines 8–15). The clause in question states that the exiles may remain in the cities (ἐν ταῖς πόλεσι διατελεῖν) on condition that they do not commit any crimes and prescribes the measures to be taken should this occur. After explaining the content of the treaty, the existing interpretative proposals on the clause are discussed and the hypothesis that the cities in question are Sinope and Heraclea is put forward; some examples of treaties showing a similar concern to regulate the issue of exiles are adduced. Lastly, considerations are offered as to the reasons that led Sinope and Heraclea to introduce such a treaty clause.

Russian diplomats in Spain and Antonio Ugarte (1812-1813): the controversial cooperation

The article focuses on several cases in the history of Russian-Spanish diplomatic relations during the Spanish War of Independence, especially during the first year of the Alliance treaty between the two powers. Basing on the Russian and Spanish archives, the author studies the interaction of Pavel Mohrenheim and Yuly Wallenstein, Russian diplomats in Spain, with Antonio Ugarte y Larrazábal, the Spanish bureaucrat, responsible for the property and archive of the Russian mission in Madrid in 1812 – 1813. The article tends to reveal the characteristics of Russian diplomatic activity in the extraordinary war situation and in the absence of a plenipotentiary representative of Russia in Spain. The initial period of Russian-Spanish relations in the Iberian Peninsula after the conclusion of the treatise in Velikiye Luki is still presented in historiography in the most general form; the biographies and activities of its participants have not been studied in details. The primary sources used in the article enable to reconstruct the historical context and the relationship between Russian and Spanish diplomats, their perception of allied cooperation, and the obstacles they had to overcome. Thanks to the orders of Pavel Mohrenheim, the Chargé d’Affaires of Russia, given before his compelled departure from Spain, the interests of Russian Empire were ensured by balancing the official activities of the Spanish representative and the activity of the Russian agent Wallenstein, whose diplomatic status was doubtful. Ugarte, a trustee of the Russian mission, was guided by the instructions of the Regency Council and sought to establish his monopoly on the affairs of the Russian mission, including informing the Government of the Russian empire about the situation in Spain. Despite the personal rivalry between the Russian and Spanish representatives, both sides managed to avoid conflict and created the basis for the development of allied relations between Spain and Russia.

Choctaw Confederates: The American Civil War in Indian Country by Fay A. Yarbrough

Reviewed by: Choctaw Confederates: The American Civil War in Indian Country by Fay A. Yarbrough Nakia D. Parker (bio) Choctaw Confederates: The American Civil War in Indian Country. By Fay A. Yarbrough. ( Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2021. Pp. 280. Cloth, $32.95.) Scholars are increasingly examining the Civil War and Reconstruction eras in Indian Territory, and their studies often center the Cherokee. Historian Fay A. Yarbrough contributes to this expanding scholarship with the first book about the Choctaw Nation's involvement in the Civil War. In Choctaw Confederates, Yarbrough argues that there were two primary reasons for avid Choctaw support for the Confederacy: Choctaw leaders believed that the Confederacy offered the best chance of protecting Native sovereignty, and the nation's deep investment in the institution of chattel slavery, coupled with a desire to maintain the anti-Black racial hierarchy inherent in that institution, made siding with the Confederacy a logical choice. Choctaw planters had strong economic ties to white southerners even after expulsion to Indian Territory, and their nation was surrounded by southern states, such as Texas and Arkansas. "The Choctaw experience, then" Yarbrough asserts, "was a southern experience" (6). Chapter 1 provides an overview of the political and social structure of the Choctaws in their southeastern homelands, emphasizing how the threat and later implementation of expulsion by the federal government reshaped traditional practices of kinship, gender relations, and governance. For example, Choctaw leaders created a constitutional government based on that of the United States and reshaped property rights, such as inheritance and marital laws, to favor patriarchal instead of matriarchal family lines. Chapter 2 examines the growth of slavery in the Choctaw Nation in Indian Territory and the importance of the institution to economic recovery after removal and "as a part of the developing racial order" that shaped the decision of Choctaw leaders to side with the Confederacy (47). Yarbrough compares testimonies of the enslaved from [End Page 124] Indian Territory and the southern states to highlight the similarities in labor practices. She also provides an in-depth analysis of the laws created by Choctaw leaders soon after resettlement that circumscribed and surveilled almost every aspect of Black life in the nation. In some instances these laws were more restrictive or passed earlier than slave codes in southern states. At the same time, Yarbrough demonstrates that certain laws reflected the "legacy of traditional kinship affinities" and that "as the Choctaw adopted the practice of racialized slavery, they did so in a manner that preserved Choctaw identity" (65, 48). This is especially apparent in her discussion of a clause requiring people of African descent who had no kinship ties with the Choctaw and Chickasaw to leave or be enslaved for life. Chapter 3 discusses the decision of Choctaw leaders to side with the Confederacy by examining the alliance treaty and the debates between Choctaw leaders over joining the conflict. Unlike the Cherokee Nation, which tried to remain neutral and experienced its own internal civil war, the Choctaw swiftly and unambiguously sided with the seceding states. Chapters 4 and 5 chronicle the experiences and motivations of Choctaw men who enlisted to fight for the Confederate cause. Yarbrough skillfully analyzes the thousands of pages of enlistment records of the First Choctaw and Chickasaw Mounted Rifles to probe motivations for joining the Confederate army, circumstances of enlistment, and patterns of enrollment. To demonstrate early Choctaw enthusiasm for the war, Yarbrough points to the records of 950 men who signed up in June and July 1861, before the Choctaw Nation formally allied with the Confederacy. Serving as soldiers and light horsemen allowed Choctaw men, particularly youth, "a way to claim, or reclaim, their identities as warriors" (173). Thus, Yarbrough asserts, the Civil War reshaped and created alternative expressions of traditional notions of Indigenous masculinity. The concluding chapter details the tensions between the Choctaw government and freedpeople in the nation during Reconstruction. The federal government stipulated land and civil rights for the formerly enslaved in the surrender treaty, which angered Choctaw leaders, who viewed these requirements as usurping Native sovereignty. In addition, the anti-Black sentiment present before the war became even more rampant, as evidenced by Black codes, the banning...

We Are Brothers but Not Allies: The Sino-DPRK Alliance Revisited

It is widely noted that China maintains a “special relationship” with North Korea, which is best epitomized by the Sino-DPRK Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance that the two countries signed in July 1961. However, in the post-Cold War era, the raison d’être of this alliance treaty has been challenged. Against this backdrop, this paper traces China’s evolving interpretations of the Sino-DPRK friendship treaty. By investigating the process behind the signing of the treaty, it argues that Beijing signed an “alliance treaty” with Pyongyang to win over the latter in the context of the Sino-Soviet split. However, as China sought to improve its relations with Western powers, the Sino-DPRK friendship treaty became increasingly burdensome to Beijing. Thus, Beijing began to dilute the alliance nature of the treaty by no longer publicly affirming its security obligation toward Pyongyang. After Deng Xiaoping came to power in China, the treaty was found to be incompatible with Beijing’s newly promulgated foreign policy principle of non-alignment. To address this problem, Beijing ultimately reformulated the nature of Sino-DPRK relations and reinterpreted the Sino-DPRK friendship treaty—that is, China is not an ally of North Korea, and the Sino-DPRK friendship treaty carries only symbolic meaning without casus foederis. Based on these analyses, this paper claims that the security obligation of the Sino-DPRK friendship treaty is no longer functional.

THE IDEA OF FRIENDSHIP IN THE SINO-SOVIET TREATY OF FRIENDSHIP, ALLIANCE AND MUTUAL ASSISTANCE

B a c k g r o u nd . The article critically examines the concept of peace in the context of the Sino-Soviet Treaty of Friendship, Alliance and Mutual Assistance. This study delves into the historical, diplomatic, and philosophical dimensions of the Treaty between the Soviet Union and the People's Republic of China in the mid-twentieth century. M e t h o d s . The study is based on a systematic analysis of the original documents of the Sino-Soviet Treaty and other primary sources that record the context and content of the agreement. The article uses a comprehensive analysis of primary sources, diplomatic correspondence, political discourse, and philosophical narrative to illuminate various interpretations and implementations of the treaty's peace provisions. Analyzing the philosophical basis of the agreement, it is taken into account how the ideas and concepts of friendship, union and mutual assistance were interpreted in the philosophical context of both countries. The article uses methods of comparative analysis to establish common and distinctive features between the ideology of the Sino-Soviet Treaty. Re s u l t s . The study provides valuable information about the geopolitical dynamics of the 20th century, shedding light on how the two major communist powers managed their diplomatic relations. By examining the ideological underpinnings and practical implications of the Treaty's peace-oriented provisions, the article contributes to understanding the broader landscape of international relations in this dynamic period. C o n c l u s i o n s . The study provides important information about the geopolitical dynamics of the 20th century, revealing how the two leading communist states managed their diplomatic relations. The article also considers the prospects for the development of dynamics between the Soviet Union and the People's Republic of China, examining the difficulties and problems that arose in maintaining peaceful relations between powerful states with common political ideologies based on the principles of Marxism. Analyzing the ideological foundation and practical consequences of the peacekeeping principles in the treaty, the article contributes to a better understanding of the broad context of international relations and philosophical narrative.

Латинская Америка и НАТО: форматы корреляций в ХХ – первой четверти XXI века

The article provides a comprehensive analysis of historical and contemporary relationships between Latin America and the NATO bloc. The relevance of the study is based on the strategic focus of the Atlantic Alliance in the “global South” as a direction for diversifying its extra-regional ties. The article provides a detailed analysis of the world bibliography available by 2022 on the problems of relations between Latin America and NATO. Two main research waves are emphasized. The impetus for the first wave was given by Argentina’s intentions to move closer to NATO at the end of the 20th century. In the 21st century, the rise of the research interest was provoked by the close rapprochement of Colombia with the Alliance. The study is based on the logical-historical method, which makes it possible to consider the object both in development and in structural-logical aspects. A comparative analysis of the texts of the NATO treaties and the Inter-American Treaty on Mutual Assistance, as a Latin American source of the Atlantic Alliance treaty, has been carried out. The author proves that this relationship remains relevant at the present time. For the first time in Russian Latin American studies, the trajectory of Colombia’s rapprochement with NATO is analyzed, and the historical background of this process in the 20th century is considered. Colombia’s interaction with the alliance in the 21st century is viewed as a key element in the system of relations between the region and the alliance. Three main areas, in which Colombia performs intermediary functions, have been identified: the operational-tactical, the educational and the integration area. All of the above leads to the conclusion that in the structure of Latin America–NATO ties, there is a clear predominance of indirect ties, both in the historical plane and in the current profile of relations. The hypothesis of the study is that their array has a sufficient critical mass to cause qualitative transition towards the direct interaction formats dominance in the future.

‘강요된 밀월’에서 ‘자발적 밀월’로 — 1949-1957 중소관계의 속성 변화 —

From the establishment of the People’s Republic of China to the mid to late 1950s, Sino-Soviet relations experienced a “honeymoon” period. With the intensification of Cold War dichotomy, Stalin’s China policy was aimed at damaging American geopolitical positioning and resource-extraction in Europe and East Asia. However, this policy did not complement Beijing’s strategic objectives of stabilizing its domestic political and economic situation. The hard-won Sino-Soviet Treaty of Friendship, Alliance, and Mutual Assistance in 1950 maintained China’s status as a junior partner in this relationship and increased Chinese dependency on the Soviet Union through the Korean War. In the post-Stalin era, however, Moscow pursued a peaceful coexistence and the alignment of the two states’ strategic goals ensued. This led to constructive cooperation on more equal terms. Thus, the binding nature of Sino-Soviet relations transformed into a voluntary association in the post-Stalin era.

북중동맹 체결의 국제정치학적 논의

본 논문은 중국과 북한이 동맹을 체결한 1961년을 중심으로 관련 국가 간의 역학관계를 살펴보고, 국제정치 이론으로 재조명하고자 한다. 북한과 중국이 실질적 동맹관계를 유지하고 있었음에도 불구하고 이 시기에 공식적 동맹관계를 체결한 이유는 무엇인가? 본 논문에서는 동맹 이론에서 논의되고 있는 구속 정책을 소개하고, 이를 이용한 이론적 논리를 제시한다. 이러한 논리가 중국과 북한의 동맹에서 어떻게 나타났는지 설명하고, 결론에서는 현재 북중관계 및 동북아시아에 대한 시사점을 제시한다.

New Questions for an Old Alliance: NATO in Cyberspace and American Public Opinion

Abstract Cybersecurity poses new questions for old alliances. These questions emerge with special force in the case of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). The Russian Federation wields substantial cyber capabilities, but NATO members have been ambivalent about stating what sorts of attacks would trigger the North Atlantic Treaty's Article 5 collective self-defense provisions. Nevertheless, NATO officials state that there are some attacks that would trigger Article 5. This leads to a puzzle: why would an explicit alliance guarantee designed to ensure collective defense against certain forms of attack be informally extended to include others? Because the policy of the United States toward such questions will likely be of great significance in determining NATO policy, we use a series of survey experiments to test American public opinion regarding support for defending allies and friendly countries against cyber operations. Respondents are likelier to support a response to an attack that causes fatalities and when the victim has a treaty alliance with the United States. In contrast, support falls if US participation is likely to provoke further retaliation or the target attacked is civilian rather than military.

Strategic partnerships and China’s diplomacy in Europe: Insights from Italy

As discussions of a ‘new cold war’ between China and the West intensify, it has never been more important to understand how China engages internationally. Crucially, as of 2022, China has established 110 ‘strategic partnerships’, without stipulating any formal treaty of alliance, but we know little about strategic partnerships and how China uses them, despite their centrality as a foreign policy tool. Departing from the assumption of the state as a unitary and monolithic actor in international affairs, this article proposes a new framework of strategic partnerships which incorporates sub-state entities as well as an ideational component, highlighting the image-building purpose that these partnerships serve. Empirically, the analysis focuses on the evolution of the Sino-Italian strategic partnership, drawing on a critical discourse analysis of 1294 news articles published as part of the agreement between the Chinese and Italian news agencies Xinhua and ANSA.