This chapter comprehensively discusses theoretical approaches to international law and global governance, and provides a historical overview of the development of international law

Chapter 3 is the first of four chapters that bring Indian (South Asian) agents and Indian structural power into the rise of the first global economy. This serves ultimately as a counterweight to the Sinocentrism of parts of the California School as well as Eurocentrism's and Eurofetishism's exclusive focus on Western hyper-agency. Critical here is the focus on Indian cotton textile (ICT) exports that wove together the FGE. They armed Indian merchant capitalists with a nascent global structural power that was vital in organising the global trading and production systems. It also discusses the Afro-Indian pivot of the FGE. The first section provincialises the Atlantic ‘triangular trading system’ by revealing the ‘global-Atlantic system’ in the context of the global silver trading system. The second section focuses on how the ICT-trading system wove together the FGE while being embedded within the global silver system. And the role of ICTs was pivotal to the African slave trade, comprising the major currency to purchase slaves. ICTs also constituted a global super-commodity chain that nurtured other global production/commodity chains. Finally, the chapter reveals the heptagonal African slave trade system that spanned the Indian and Atlantic Oceans, comprising the European, Islamic and Indian slave trades.

This chapter discusses the subjects of international law: how states come into being, and how international organizations are created.

This chapter discusses how states ought to behave in tiems of armed conflict, highlighting the role of such mechanisms as proportionality and military necessity

The chapter discusses the mechanisms international alw has at its disposal to stimulate compliance with its rules: sanctions, counter-measures, colelctive action

This chapter discusses the basics of the law of treaties: what they are, how they are concluded, what effects they generate, and how they are to be terminated. It is built around the 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties

Chapter 1 introduces the key conceptual themes/problems that underpin this book. It begins by arguing that current accounts of globalization and the global economy are Eurocentric in that they view these phenomena as the sole product of Western power and agency. It then feeds into the analysis of Benjamin Cohen's call for the return to ‘big picture’ visions and accounts of IPE given my belief that British- and US-School IPE have produced ahistorical/presentist and narrow conceptions of the global economy. To counter this I advance a global historical sociological approach that reveals the origins of both the global economy and capitalism in the last half-millennium. In problematising the dominant, naturalised Western conception I seek to replace it with an alternative non-Eurocentric approach that foregrounds the interconnections between Western and non-Western agency. I then sketch a picture of what ‘Eurocentrism I’ comprises before providing a critique of ‘Eurocentrism II’ that is advanced by fundamentalist critical postcolonialism, with the latter reproducing Western-centrism (i.e., ‘Eurofetishism’). Finally, having provided a sympathetic critique of the California School of global history on the grounds of its fetishization of non-Western agency I conclude by defining capitalism and providing a sketch-map of the journey ahead.

INTRODUCTION

In contemporary diplomacy, the governments are not the sole actors in bilateral ties; the business sector and people to people contacts are indispensable to the process. Where Indonesia and China are concerned, much progress has been demonstrated in the managing of relations over the last seventy years.

Beijing perceives Indonesia as a resource-rich nation with considerable regional clout. On the other hand, Jakarta considers China an economic juggernaut with global and regional power which offers plenty of opportunities for cooperation. Beijing is aiming for collaboration that benefits its strategic interests. It is now the leading player in the steel industry. This also means that it is the world's largest stainless steel producer and top importer of nickel ore. Meanwhile, Indonesia has the world's largest reserves of nickel, a key component in stainless steel. In August 2020, China's nickel ore import from Indonesia surged 26.5 per cent year-on-year. This mutual interest does not however necessarily lead to smooth cooperation. The COVID-19 pandemic and the Indonesian people's reservations about China presented obstructions.

In the Natuna waters, shortly, before the identification of the first case of the coronavirus by Chinese authorities in Wuhan, both countries were involved in a stand-off following the violation of the Indonesian Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) by Chinese fishing vessels escorted by the Chinese Coast Guard. This unfortunate incident deepened grassroots perception of China as a hegemonic power that threatens the territorial rights of Indonesia.

During the pandemic, however, both countries have been standing shoulder-to-shoulder in battling the novel coronavirus. The cooperation in this area involves many stakeholders ranging from the government to the business sector to people-to-people contacts. It remains to be seen if this close cooperation in the fight against the coronavirus—which has become both governments’ priorities—will foster better bilateral ties in the long term.

On 29 August 2020, Median, a Jakarta-based survey institution published a study demonstrating the that Indonesian people see China as the biggest threat (31.5 per cent), followed by the US (10.8 per cent) and Malaysia (4.3 per cent).

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

• • The 70th anniversary of Sino-Indonesia bilateral relations is marked by issues alongside the coronavirus pandemic, such as medical cooperation, the import of Chinese workers, and confrontation in the Natuna waters.

• • Since the first case of coronavirus was identified in Wuhan in late December 2019, Indonesia has been generously assisting China in coping with the pandemic. In return, when the outbreak occurred in Indonesia, China also rendered support to its strategic partner.

• • The collaboration occurred at government-to-government (G-to-G) level (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Defence), business-to-business (B-to-B) level (state-owned companies and private companies), and people-to-people (P-to-P) level (ethnic Chinese associations, philanthropic institution). However, both Indonesia and China have not optimized on the P-to-P or grassroots interaction.

• • China's “vaccine diplomacy” is not unconditional, and Beijing may use its vaccine donations to advance its regional agenda, particularly on sensitive issues such as its claims in the South China Sea.

• • The import of Chinese workers into certain Indonesian regions has met with local opposition. This has been resolved with the central and the regional governments reaching an understanding that the Chinese projects will eventually benefit the local economy.

• • In the Natuna waters, Jakarta shows a shift in tone from confrontation (during Jokowi's first term) to moderation. Although Chinese fishing vessels are likely to continue fishing there, the Jokowi administration is likely to deliver business-as-usual responses in order to maintain cordial relations with China while not compromising on its own territorial claims.

• • Overall, bilateral relations on the G-to-G level are amicable and even facilitate B-to-B contacts. However, on the P-to-P level, Indonesians remain suspicious of China. Both governments need to make the common Indonesians key beneficiaries of bilateral cooperation, for example, by providing reliable vaccines to them.

The economic, political, strategic and cultural dynamism in Southeast Asia has gained added relevance in recent years with the spectacular rise of giant economies in East and South Asia. This has drawn greater attention to the region and to the enhanced role it now plays in international relations and global economics.

The sustained effort made by Southeast Asian nations since 1967 towards a peaceful and gradual integration of their economies has had indubitable success, and perhaps as a consequence of this, most of these countries are undergoing deep political and social changes domestically and are constructing innovative solutions to meet new international challenges. Big Power tensions continue to be played out in the neighbourhood despite the tradition of neutrality exercised by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

The Trends in Southeast Asia series acts as a platform for serious analyses by selected authors who are experts in their fields. It is aimed at encouraging policymakers and scholars to contemplate the diversity and dynamism of this exciting region.

THE EDITORS

Series Chairman:

Choi Shing Kwok

Series Editor:

Editorial Committee: