Under the fifth generation of leaders, a conceptual shift in China’s foreign policy is becoming abundantly apparent. Xi Jinping is more clearly jettisoning long-standing Deng Xiaoping’s foreign policy dictum of “hide and bide,” calling for big power diplomacy and a great revitalisation of the Chinese

nation. This is not merely rhetoric. China is becoming more active in its closest neighbourhood and Asia, and is expanding its influence worldwide. Apart from coining new diplomatic catchphrases to win hearts and minds, China is establishing new institutions as an alternative to the Western-led global architecture, to reflect its ascendancy and normative power.