A mixed funding pattern: China's exercise of power within the United Nations

This article contributes to the expanding literature on China's position in international organisations by examining the extent to which, and how, China's exercise of power in the United Nations (UN) development pillar has evolved over the last decade. Building on a four‐legged power framework, we contrast the status quo of power configurations in UN development work with China's evolving attempts to exercise compulsory, institutional, structural and productive power. We identify a heterogeneous set of engagement patterns and find that China's standing as a developing country is an integral part of how its global power ambitions unfold at the UN. While shifts in China's power in and through UN development work have remained limited, taken together insights from the power type analysis suggest that China is in the process of challenging and/or redefining some of the central contours of the UN development pillar.

From developing country to superpower? China, power shifts and the United Nations development pillar

Baumann,

Haug,

Weinlich

2024

Comprehensive power shifts in the making: China's policy transfer partnerships with the United Nations

Haug,

Waisbich

2024

China and the United Nations (UN) have set up a growing number of partnerships to transfer Chinese domestic development policies across the South. By examining these partnerships through a power shift lens, we suggest that UN‐endorsed policy transfer processes can function as a window into shifting international cooperation dynamics. The paper first provides an overview of the evolution and key characteristics of China–UN policy transfer partnerships, focusing on China's trajectory as a provider of policy solutions. It then analyses the extent to which the evolving partnership landscape contributes to and reflects shifts in China's compulsory, institutional, structural and productive power. Overall, we argue that policy transfer partnerships contribute to comprehensive power shifts in the making: while empirical data point to China's often (still) limited and evolving ability to influence the actions of others, our findings provide evidence for increasing levels of Chinese influence in and through policy transfer partnerships across all power types.

Power shifts in international organisations: China at the United Nations

Haug,

Foot,

Baumann

2024

The People's Republic of China is central to current debates about power shifts in international organisations, but a systematic and comprehensive assessment of China‐related shifts has been missing. As Special Issue introduction, this article contributes to addressing this gap and examines whether, how and to what extent China‐related power shifts have unfolded at the United Nations (UN) over the last two decades or so. We define power shifts as changes in the ability of actors to shape others' capacities to act and outline a framework that builds on Barnett and Duvall's four power types of compulsory, institutional, structural and productive power. Drawing from Special Issue contributions, our analysis covers empirical insights from the UN's three main pillars – peace and security, development and human rights – and paints an uneven picture. Despite continuing Western dominance, China is mobilising more compulsory power means than two decades ago. Chinese attempts to enact institutional power have also increased but mostly unfold in multilateral niches and remain cautious. While China's structural power position has expanded, China‐related effects in productive power have so far remained limited and scattered. We conclude with a combined assessment of changes across power types and discuss research and policy implications.