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Germany''s rise to power before World War I from a Chinese persective, and the geopolitical lessons for today. A series of solemn anniversary events have marked the centenary of World War I. Could history repeat itself in today''s geopolitics? Now, as then, a land power with a growing economy and a maritime power with global commitments are the two leading states in the international system. Most ominously, the outbreak of war in 1914 is a stark reminder that nations cannot rely on economic interdependence and ongoing diplomacy to keep the peace. In Xu''s account demonstrates that better strategy and statesmanship could have made a difference--for Germany and Europe. His analysis offers important lessons for the leaders of China and other countries.
List of contents
Foreword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii
Graham Allison
Translator’s Note . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xi
Joshua Hill
Preface. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .xvii
Xu Qiyu
1. A Low-Posture Rise. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
2. “Active Shaping” and the Foundation of a Grand Staretegy. . . . . .33
3. Working to Maintain the Grand Strategy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .67
4. Entering the Post-Bismarckian Era . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
5. Institutions, Society, Popular Opinion, and Grand Strategy. . . . .127
6. From Weltpolitik to Encirclement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
7. An Obsession with Command of the Seas . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
8. The Schlieffen Plan and the Retreat of Grand Strategy. . . . . . . .227
9. Crisis Management on the Path to World War, 1908–1914. . . . . . . 259
Notes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .293
About the Author. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .329
Contributors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .331
Index. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .333
Belfer Center Studies in International Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 343
About the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. . . . . . .346
About the author
Xu Qiyu is Deputy Director of the Institute for Strategic Studies at National Defense University in Beijing.Graham Allison is Douglas Dillon Professor of Government and Director of the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at the Harvard Kennedy School.
