Abstract
In the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, China provided medical assistance on an unprecedented scale. While some observers have underscored the strategic purposes of China's COVID-19 aid, referred to as “mask diplomacy,” they have yet to assess this argument against empirical evidence. We seek to examine whether China's medical aid was used as a strategic tool, or it remained reactionary and fragmented, by combining a new dataset on the global distribution of Chinese in-kind medical aid with a qualitative analysis of government and news reports during the first wave of the pandemic. Our findings show that although COVID-19 aid did have the potential to strengthen China's influence over recipients and promote Chinese knowledge of health governance, Chinese policymakers were underprepared to use aid strategically during the pandemic. The reactionary and fragmented nature of China's COVID-19 aid was reflected in its allocation, its policy-making processes, and its implementation.
Original language | English |
---|---|
Pages (from-to) | 381-412 |
Number of pages | 32 |
Journal | Journal of Chinese Current Affairs |
Volume | 52 |
Issue number | 3 |
Early online date | 8 Jan 2023 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 31 Dec 2023 |
Bibliographical note
Research conducted for this article was funded by Shanghai Philosophy and Social Science Planning Project (grant number: 2020EGJ001)Funding
The authors disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This work was funded by the Shanghai Philosophy and Social Science Planning Project (grant number: 2020EGJ001).
Funders | Funder number |
---|---|
Shanghai Philosophy and Social Science Planning Project | 2020EGJ001 |
Keywords
- COVID-19
- China
- mask diplomacy
- medical assistance
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General Economics,Econometrics and Finance
- Political Science and International Relations
- Sociology and Political Science