Beijing Rules: China’s Quest for Global Influence

LONGLISTED FOR FINANCIAL TIMES AND SCHRODERS BUSINESS BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARD

A FINANCIAL TIMES BUSINESS BOOK OF THE YEAR

‘Excellent . . . reveals an insidious matrix of spying, deception, censorship and repression . . . compelling’ Daily Telegraph

‘A timely read . . . Chilling . . . Startling . . . A powerful case for more coordinated western intervention’ Guardian

‘Brilliant’ Irish Sunday Independent

The remarkable story of China’s two-decade quest for global dominance.

For several decades China’s ascendancy has been supported by an astonishingly broad and deep portfolio of quiet coercion. Stories of the Chinese Communist Party’s authoritarian reach are breathtaking – the gagging of sports stars and huge Western brands; Hollywood self-censorship; infrastructure deals in exchange for political loyalty in multilateral organizations; and of course – communications firms. But these are just the most visible examples.

Beijing Rules exposes the armoury of strategies with which China has exploited Western weakness to position itself as leader in the game of nations: tying market access to political acquiescence; punitive tariffs; online disinformation operations; use of private companies to spy on global users; leveraging vaccines for geopolitical gain; and the crushing of democracy in Hong Kong. With these weapons and dextrous manoeuvrings during the global pandemic, China positioned itself to take its place at the apex of world powers.

Bethany Allen, an internationally recognized investigator into China’s covert power, shows Western institutions have bowed to and even enabled Beijing’s coercion. As we come reeling out of a global pandemic and eyes are on a new war in Europe, this revealing analysis sounds the alarm about the most significant shift in the new world order, and what we must do to prevent the loss of freedoms we take for granted.

Bethany Allen is the China reporter at Axios. She previously worked as the lead reporter for the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists’ China Cables project, and as a reporter and editor at Foreign Policy magazine. In 2020 she received the Robert D. G. Lewis Watchdog Award and was a finalist for the Batten Medal for Courage in Journalism. A fluent Mandarin speaker, she previously lived in China for four years. She now lives in Taiwan.