Abstract:
The ‘Rise of China’ is fast becoming one of the most significant events in modern world
history. Yet academic assessments of the country’s development so far remain on one
hand narrowly focused on economic and military factors and, on the other, of secondary
relevance to New Zealand. This thesis addresses both deficiencies. It juxtaposes New
Zealand’s bilateral relationships with China and the world’s predominant power, the
United States, and looks for indications that New Zealand is moving away from the latter
towards the former. If China is, as some commentators claim, the ‘next superpower’ and
the United States conversely in decline, the various political, economic, and cultural
interactions constituting the two bilateral relationships should reveal increasing activity
with China relative to the United States. This is shown to be the case, but with heavy
qualifications. While interaction with China is growing, it is concentrated in areas that
promote China’s development while areas that provide tangible benefits to New Zealand
have shown less improvement. Consequently, New Zealand’s relationship with China
remains relatively expendable when compared to the United States, thus reducing China’s
overall influence and raising questions about the nature of its ‘rise.’
