Assessing China's Hegemonic Ambitions Amidst the Eastward Shift of Global Power: An Analysis of Offensive Realism and Economic Growth

Abstract

Rising of China and gradual decline of United States (US) influence, coupled with the eastward shift of power has led some scholars to suggest that China will replace hegemonic position of the US. China-U. S rivalry is not a new scholarly topic. This study contributes to the existing scholarship on China-US competition by providing a comparative analysis of hegemonic pathways, comparing its current economic and geopolitical situation with the historical trajectory of US hegemony and offering insights into the limitations of China's protentional to be regional hegemon. Anchored on Mearsheimer’s hypothesis, which posits that regional hegemony is a prerequisite for global hegemony, and the analysis of the relations between economic superiority and hegemony, this study seeks to answer whether China can become a regional hegemon amidst eastward shift of power and the ongoing rivalry with the US. It frames China's challenge to US hegemony as an attempt to take a hegemonic position within the existing order, rather than advocating for the new. Through qualitative and quantitative analyses this research suggests that while China may lessen US influence but won't replace US hegemony. Key reasons include are:1) The US, along with its allies, aims to limit China's influence, and China’s inability to exclude US influence in Asia; 2) The highest GDP does not guarantee hegemony; 3) Asia’s traditional multipolarity.