The Role of Threat Perceptions in International Relations: Analysing China's Rise in the Indo-Pacific

by Vindu Mai Chotani (Editor)

Overview

With China’s rise in the Indo-Pacific, this book systematically analyses and explores the complex reality of questions regarding threat perception—why and when do states perceive or do not perceive China as a threat, and what influences or drives these perceptions? How have their perceptions evolved and changed over time? To provide deeper insight, it moves beyond traditional Realist explanations of the “China threat”. Additionally, by engaging in a diverse theoretical discussion, it studies the various perspectives of key Indo-Pacific players: India, Japan, China, the United States, Australia, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and South Korea.

Mapping the formation and changing perceptions of threat regarding China’s rise, this book would be essential reading for scholars, students, and researchers of international relations studying the Indo-Pacific region, threat perception, global politics, geopolitics, foreign policy, Chinese studies, middle powers, and strategic studies. It will also be a useful handy reference for foreign policy experts, government bureaucrats, and think tanks.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781040403822
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	08/01/2025
Series:	Indo-Pacific in Context
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	192
File size:	769 KB

About the Author

Vindu Mai Chotani is Assistant Professor in the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Tsukuba, Japan. Her research examines Japan’s and India’s foreign policies, international relations, the evolving security architecture in the Indo-Pacific region, and the security dynamics of the U.S. bases in Okinawa. Professor Chotani previously completed her Ph.D. from the Graduate School of Public Policy, Tokyo University, and her M.Sc. in international relations from the University of Bristol, United Kingdom.

Table of Contents

List of Contributors vii

1 Introduction 1

2 Images Behind the “China Threat” by the United States: The Underlying Effect of Images in Threat Perceptions and Strategic Verbal Expressions 13

YUKI MORITANI

3 Avoiding the Resonance of Internal and External Threats: China’s Fortification of the Border in Tibet 31

AKI SAKABE-MORI

4 Perceptions and Misperceptions: India’s Maritime Threat Assessment of China in the Indian Ocean Region 50

EERISHIKA PANKAJ AND JAGANNATH PANDA

5 The End of Western Superiority: Japan’s Threat Perceptions During and After the Cold War 70

TOMOHIKO SATAKE

6 Japan’s and India’s Threat Perceptions of China in the Indo-Pacific: A Discourse Analysis on the Formation of a Collective Identity 91

VINDU MAI CHOTANI

7 Strategic Narratives of the Moon and Yoon Administrations: What Shapes South Korea’s Approach to China 115

SHIN-AE LEE AND YEONG IK KIM

8 Strategic Culture and Threat Perception: ASEAN’s Response to Great Power Rivalry in Indo-Pacific 138

MUHAMAD ARIF

9 Unpacking Australia’s “China Threat” Discourse: A Constructivist Approach 158

SHAKTHI DE SILVA

10 Conclusion 175

VINDU MAI CHOTANI

Index 179