China’s Relational Power in Central and Eastern Europe

This book examines the rise and fall of Sino-Czech relations after 2012, which coincided with China’s outward political and economic expansion through the Belt and Road Initiative and the construction of a global network of partnerships, including in Central and Eastern Europe. Drawing on relational theory rooted in the Chinese concept of guanxi, the authors analyze to what extent China was able to secure the compliance of the Czech Republic with its core interests.

The volume extends the application of relationality beyond its conventional focus on China’s engagement with Africa, Southeast Asia, and Latin America. The key to understanding China’s approach to Central and Eastern Europe lies in the region's perceived peripherality in China’s intellectual and political tradition. By situating China’s approach within the broader context of relations with the Global South, the book sheds light on the instruments through which China consolidates its global position.

It provides empirically grounded analysis for academics, policy analysts, and decision-makers seeking to better understand Sino-Czech relations, China’s policy towards Central and Eastern Europe, and patterns of China’s global engagement. It will also be of interest to students and scholars of International Relations, especially those engaged with non-Western IR theory.

Bartosz Kowalski is an Associate Professor at the Department of Asian Studies of the University of Łódź, Poland. His research explores China’s foreign policy, particularly its engagement with Central and Eastern Europe and the Global South. He has published on China’s regional diplomacy in Central and Eastern Europe and Chinese ideological narratives. He is the co-author of China's Vertical Multilateralism and the Global South: Narratives, Networks, and Money (2025).

Filip Šebok is a PhD researcher at the Department of Asian Studies, Palacký University Olomouc, Czech Republic, and the Head of Prague Office at the Central European Institute of Asian Studies (CEIAS). He has published on China’s relations with Central and Eastern Europe, particularly with the Czech Republic and Slovakia.