Backlash

Winner of the Fletcher Russia and Eurasia 2026 Book Award, Tufts University

Central Asia is at the forefront of China's efforts to assert itself as a major world power. Since 1991, Beijing has emerged as the region's main investor, creditor and trade partner, as well as an increasingly important security provider. But its growing influence has met opposition: in recent years, anti-China protests have erupted across Central Asia, threatening Beijing's shaky regional hegemony.

Bradley Jardine and Edward Lemon examine how Central Asians are pushing back against China's global ambitions, and trace Beijing's attempts to manage its image and secure its interests in response. Drawing on over a decade of fieldwork, Backlash reveals the uncertainties of China's rise. Far from being the omnipotent strategist often depicted in international media, Beijing is making significant missteps, alienating local people and becoming entangled in costly interventions to protect its citizens and investments. Russia's fullscale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 undermined Moscow's regional position, creating opportunities for China to expand its role. But to do so, it must contend with the agency of Central Asians themselves: their interests, policies and priorities.

This incisive book exposes the unravelling of China's alternative to the American-led global order, highlighting both elite and grassroots actors forcing Beijing to adapt its approach.

Bradley Jardine is a political risk analyst, strategic consultant and Managing Director of the Oxus Society for Central Asian Affairs. He is a former fellow at the Wilson Center and served as editor of The Moscow Times (2016–2018) in Russia. His work has appeared in TIME, The Wall Street Journal, The Economist, Nikkei Asia, The Atlantic and Foreign Policy, and on the BBC and CNN, among others. Bradley is a frequent guest lecturer at the US Foreign Service Institute and resides in Washington, DC.

Edward Lemon is Research Assistant Professor of Government and Public Service at the Bush School of Government and Public Affairs, Texas A&M University, Washington, DC, and President of the Oxus Society for Central Asian Affairs. He previously held positions at the Wilson Center and Columbia University. His research focuses on authoritarianism and security issues in Central Asia.