China’s rise and its importance to international relations is well recognized. Yet, in the literature, little is known about China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), its diplomats and the significant representational role it plays in China’s international affairs. Moreover, MOFA’s significance is traditionally downplayed even as China’s diplomacy becomes discernibly assertive in the Xi Jinping era. Who ‘produces’ Chinese assertiveness and how is this represented in China’s international affairs? How do others perceive Chinese diplomatic practices and what are the effects of these perceptions? The book argues that MOFA is a central supplier of the ‘assertive’ motif – challenging notions of a weak institution that have little influence on policy making.

Contrarily, the book finds a suite of compelling capacities that MOFA and its diplomats uniquely possess to exercise influence. China’s Rising Foreign Ministry suggests Beijing’s increasingly assertive foreign policy must be seen through MOFA’s heightened representational role. It alerts readers to the increasingly consequential role of MOFA in contemporary China’s foreign policy.

This book is published by Stanford University Press in their ‘Studies Asian Security’ series and is available for sale at SUP and Amazon.

Praise for China’s Rising Foreign Ministry

“Dylan M.H Loh persuasively argues against traditional state-centric understandings of China’s rise and its place in the international system, calling attention to the marked growth in budget and influence of its Ministry of Foreign Affairs in ways that are suitable to both Chinese public opinion and to the country’s top leadership.”

—June Teufel Dreyer, University of Miami

“This remarkable book not only reveals the inner workings of the Chinese Foreign Ministry but demonstrates the profound significance of practice theory in unraveling the complex web of social dynamics that have propelled China towards becoming an assertive global power. Dylan M.H Loh convincingly shows that to understand China’s ascent, one cannot overlook the diplomats whose everyday activities embody a rising China.”

—Rebecca Adler-Nissen, University of Copenhagen

“Dylan M.H Loh’s historically in-depth and up-to-date case study provides a unique institutional perspective to explain China’s increasingly assertive foreign policy. A timely addition to the scholarship of China’s international behavior, this book is strongly recommended for those who want to learn about Chinese foreign policy and foreign relations as well as contemporary international geopolitics.”

—Suisheng Zhao, University of Denver

Book Reviews in Journals & Interviews

“China’s Rising Foreign Ministry will surely become a key reference for all those that are interested in understanding China’s international behaviour…” Cambridge Review of International Affairs

“Dylan M.H Loh makes a stunning contribution to recent diplomatic studies and International Relations (ir) scholarship. This contribution is both theoretical, driven by the book’s careful application and development of Bourdieusian practice theory…” Hague Journal of Diplomacy.

“China’s Rising Foreign Ministry will surely be of interest and utility for academic and practitioner communities.” China Quarterly,

“Overall, this book is an important contribution to the practice turn in IR theory. It is an essential addition to postgraduate courses on IR and Chinese foreign policy.” International Relations of Asia-Pacific

There are also a couple of Podcasts I did on the book, first with CSIS and Jude Blanchete – ‘Does China’s Foreign Policy Matter‘ and German Marshall Fund’s ‘China Global Podcast’, with Bonnie Glaser on China’s Foreign Ministry.

About the author

Dr Dylan M.H Loh (骆明辉) is an assistant professor at the public policy and global affairs programme, at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore. He received his PhD at the University of Cambridge. His research interests focuses on Chinese foreign policy, ASEAN regionalism, and the practices of international diplomacy. He has published in these areas at journals such as International Affairs, Cooperation & Conflict, China Quarterly, Australian Journal of International Affairs, Global Studies Quarterly, International Relations of Asia-Pacific and International Studies Review among others.

Dylan is working on his second book project which focuses on the politics and practices of China’s discourse power (huayu quan/话语权). Find out more about Dylan and his research at dylanloh.com