When Nations and Civilizations Collide How China's history, domestic policy, and international relations affect international law

In light of decisions on Syria made during 2012-2013 within the United Nations Security Council, China's strategic use of its veto power, and manipulation of multilateral organizations reflects its status as a growing superpower within a multipolar world. Moving away from a Washington dominated international consensuses with a pivot to Beijing, the international community is revolving international law back to the protection of sovereignty. As China continues to progress in economic power through its socialist market economy, the "Beijing Consensus" is uniting the world's second largest economy with a coalition of the like-minded. Rather than focusing on fundamentally Western UN norms such as the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) and the implementation of self-determination, China is instead emphasizing economic development without the constraints of human rights and other liberal market demands. China's traditional international relations focus as framed through traditional international law is due to historical domestic circumstances that shape their own international interest.;Chapter 1 studies China's historical circumstances and practices of economically based diplomacy that shape their current non-interventionist practice. Chapter 2 utilizes Western China as a case study, the Tibet and Xinjiang regions represent China's historical weaknesses as reflected in their own interpretation of UN law. Chapter 3 vulnerable position and relationship to the United States. In addition it examines the application of non-interventionist law with the international power struggle in the China Seas with case studies of the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands in the east and the Spratly and Paracel Islands in the south. Overall the objective of this thesis is to illustrate China's domestic concerns within international relations, which will reshape international law to its own image, not by force, but through long-term aspects of soft and smart power.