Mutilateralism vs. Bilateralism in Chinese Resource Diplomacy : Comparative Analysis on Chinese Foreign Policy toward Central Asia and Africa

중국 자원외교의 다자주의와 양자주의: 중앙아시아 및 아프리카에 대한 중국 자원외교 비교

International relations in the 21st century is featured by boundless competition among nations to secure sufficient energy resources for achieving economic development. Resource diplomacy, therefore, is competitive in its nature, which is derived from the fact that resources of the globe are limited. Chinese recent economic growth has been possible mainly due to its success in resource diplomacy. The Chinese resource diplomacy has shown two different patterns according to target regions. On the one hand, China has pursued multilateral approach to Central Asia region, by which China aimed to secure energy with joint exploration method in the region. Chinese resource diplomacy toward Africa, on the other hand, has been based on bilateral approach combined with unit-centered economic aid to African nations. This difference in Chinese foreign policy pattern seems to be derived from three factors: namely, Chinese strategic considerations on geopolitical condition, regional security sensitivity, and legacies of Chinese long-time non-alignment diplomacy since the 1950s. Whether China is able to maintain the current pattern of resource diplomacy will be depended on how wisely China pursue its relations with two other global powers: Russia in the Central Asia and the U.S. in Africa. In this regard, the Chinese resource diplomacy is expected to work as determining factor of shaping a pattern of tri-lateral strategic relations among the U.S., Russia, and China. Chinese resource diplomacy thus will determine the future direction of the global politics in terms of strategic arrangement.

에너지 자원 확보 경쟁은 21세기 국제관계의 핵심적 추세의 하나다. 중국 경제발전의 원동력은 성공적 자원외교의 성과라고 해도 과언이 아니다. 1990년대 이후 중국의 에너지 수입 외교는 두 가지 행위 패턴을 보여주고 있다. 중앙아시아에 대한 자원 외교가 공동개발을 중심으로 한 다자주의적 접근방식이라면, 아프리카 지역에 대해서는 국가별 경제지원을 통한 양자주의적 행위패턴이다. 이 글에서는 지역에 따라 다르게 전개되어 온 중국 자원외교의 특징을 지역적 안보 민감성, 지정학적 고려, 그리고 비동맹외교 이후 축적되어 왔던 중국의 외교적 유산 등의 세 가지 측면에서 설명하였다.