Call for Book Chapters: “China’s Dilemma in the post-US Occupation Afghanistan: Opportunities vs. Challenges”

Vernon Press invites book chapter proposals for the forthcoming edited volume titled “China’s Dilemma in the post-US Occupation Afghanistan: Opportunities vs. Challenges,” edited by Dr Mohamad Zreik

We are working on a multi-author book in the field of international relations about China’s Afghanistan strategic perspective and policy in the aftermath of the US August 2021 withdrawal. The US hasty withdrawal from Afghanistan left an unexpected vacuum that needed to be filled in by another major power, and there is no other regional power that can fit in other than China, given its economic and security stakes in a neighboring country that is left in a shambles after a 20-year American occupation. Afghanistan has an important place in China’s strategic calculations as a vital sphere of influence and a region with access to the world in light of Beijing’s efforts to restore and strengthen its leverage in its Asian neighborhood. But would China be able to get involved in Afghan affairs without becoming entangled in it?

While Washington’s loss in Afghanistan could be Beijing’s opportunity, President Biden said in the aftermath of his bumpy exit from Afghanistan that Washington was withdrawing from Afghanistan to be able to counter China in the Pacific. Beijing would arguably opt to go behind America’s back to fill in the gap that the problematic US withdrawal had created there on its precarious western/southern doorsteps. The Diplomat reported that “Afghanistan [wa]s already of strategic importance to Beijing, and as US troops le[ft], China’s influence w[ould] grow (Azad, September 22, 2020). But China’s challenges in Afghanistan could also get more and more complicated. The pertinent question here is whether China would formulate a balanced Afghanistan policy or repeat its great powers' predecessors’ strategic mistakes, which proved to be their respective downfalls later on.

Indeed, China’s involvement in Afghanistan could be a source of both great economic opportunities and haunting security challenges at the same time. On the one hand, the country has sought to capitalize on the potential of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in and across Afghanistan, a mega project that seeks to connect China with Central Asia, Africa, Europe and beyond. This could provide China with access to new markets, resources, and investment opportunities not only in Afghanistan but also in the whole of Central Asia, a strategic sub-region for China. On the other hand, Beijing is concerned that the Taliban, with their history of terrorism and religious extremism, could now interact directly with China’s Uighur minority, which has been subject to highly controversial but politicized counterterrorism measures inside China.

This edited volume seeks to brainstorm scholarly and creative work from various perspectives that can offer a reflective and critical evaluation of China’s stand and gamble in Afghanistan. As this book will be published in English and will include around 5 chapters, it is preferred that our prospective authors be from different countries in order to synthesize perspectives from different regional and geographical affiliations. The book is expected to be ready for printing by the end of the year.

As this edited volume seeks to address some of the deeper roots of this complicated topic, it would seek to address a panoply of topics, including:

• The US withdrawal and its strategic implications for both the United States and China.
• Afghanistan’s strategic significance for competing regional and world powers.
• China’s Core Interests in Afghanistan
• China’s “Afghan-for-Afghan Policy” as Beijing’s new Approach towards the victorious Taliban.
• Beijing-Kabul Marriage of Convenience in the post-US Exit.
• Implications of Deteriorating security in the Middle East and South Asia on China’s stakes and stand in Afghanistan.
• China’s Multi-level Engagement/involvement in Afghanistan.
• The Talibans’ origins in regional powers’ calculations.

Timeline:

 If you are interested in contributing to this edited volume, please submit your proposal (500-word max.) and biography (150-word max.) to the editor, Dr. Mohamad Zreik (mohamadzreik1@gmail.com), by September 1, 2024.

Proposal acceptance will be notified by September 3, 2024.

Contributors whose abstracts get selected will receive the Vernon Press submission guidelines to prepare an 8000-to-10000-word chapter. Full chapter submissions are to be submitted by October 1, 2024.