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Jonathan E Hillman

The Emperor's New Road: China and the Project of the Century Kindle Edition

by Jonathan E. Hillman (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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A prominent authority on China’s Belt and Road Initiative reveals the global risks lurking within Beijing’s project of the century

“A reality check on Beijing’s global infrastructure project.”—Peter Neville-Hadley, South China Morning Post

"For all the hype and hand-wringing over how the [Belt and Road] could usher in the Chinese century, Hillman’s engaging mix of high-level analysis and fieldwork in more than a dozen countries paints a much more nuanced picture."—Keith Johnson, Foreign Policy

China’s Belt and Road Initiative is the world’s most ambitious and misunderstood geoeconomic vision. To carry out President Xi Jinping’s flagship foreign-policy effort, China promises to spend over one trillion dollars for new ports, railways, fiber-optic cables, power plants, and other connections. The plan touches more than one hundred and thirty countries and has expanded into the Arctic, cyberspace, and even outer space. Beijing says that it is promoting global development, but Washington warns that it is charting a path to global dominance.

Taking readers on a journey to China’s projects in Asia, Europe, and Africa, Jonathan E. Hillman reveals how this grand vision is unfolding. As China pushes beyond its borders and deep into dangerous territory, it is repeating the mistakes of the great powers that came before it, Hillman argues. If China succeeds, it will remake the world and place itself at the center of everything. But Xi may be overreaching: all roads do not yet lead to Beijing.

Print length

303 pages
Language

English
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Publisher

Yale University Press
Publication date

September 29, 2020
File size

5486 KB
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“[T]he book points up a central, unresolved paradox of China in the world...Hillman’s book is at its most beguiling when he recounts his traveller’s tales. At one point, he finds himself in Aktau, a port on the Kazakhstan side of the Caspian Sea. This is a crucial link for the BRI, a place from which cargo and people cross the huge inland sea on ships that connect Asia with Europe.”—James Kynge, Financial Times

“Jonathan Hillman’s new book offers a reality check on Beijing’s global infrastructure project . . . No mere desk-bound theoretician, he provides personal accounts of visits to key projects across Africa and Asia, struggles with bureaucracy and mutual suspicion at China’s borders, bringing all their logistics to life.”—Peter Neville-Hadley, South China Morning Post

“Hillman’s book is a rare and insightful one alerting the world to the dangers of allowing itself to be reshaped, by an autocratic China, armed with the latest mass surveillance technologies, in its image and for its benefit. The Emperor’s New Road: China and the Project of the Century deserves to be read by policymakers everywhere.”—Uday Balakrishnan, Biblio

"For all the hype and hand-wringing over how the [Belt and Road] could usher in the Chinese century, Hillman’s engaging mix of high-level analysis and fieldwork in more than a dozen countries paints a much more nuanced picture."—Keith Johnson, Foreign Policy

“A good introduction to its chosen topic.”—Tyler Cowen, Marginal Revolution

“Hillman's book provides a nuanced view of world affairs. For policymakers, it shows the risks as well as the pluses of imperial outreach and, at the opposite extreme, head in-the-sands unilateralism. . . . It could be a valuable supplement to conventional textbooks on international studies. But it will be a rewarding eye-opener for anyone interested in the rise of China and its consequences for the United States and all nations.”—Walter Clemens, New York Journal of Books

“Hillman lays out the terrain of the New Silk Road, which takes in over 130 countries and pledges upwards up a trillion dollars in investment, as well as the differing perspectives of it around the world. In the process he corrects some important misconceptions and argues that Beijing is positioning itself at the center of the new world order to replace Washington.”—Alec Ash, The Wire

"A first-rate blend of analysis and journalistic reporting from the front lines of economic statecraft."—Michael J. Mazarr, War on the Rocks

“For all the hype and hand-wringing over how the BR! could usher in the Chinese century, Hillman's engaging mix of high-level analysis and fieldwork in more than a dozen countries paints a much more nuanced picture.”—Keith Johnson, Foreign Policy

“This valuable book focuses on the many forms of resistance that China is encountering as its influence expands.”—Andrew J. Nathan, Foreign Affairs

"Hillman takes us on a wonderfully engaging journey along China’s Belt and Road. He weaves together fresh insights from on-the-ground interviews across the Eurasian continent with fascinating historical references to provide the definitive account of this grand-scale initiative that challenges our understanding of traditional geopolitical and strategic boundaries."—Elizabeth C. Economy, author of The Third Revolution

"The Emperor’s New Road is a small book that shows the industriousness of a big one: a complex blend of travel, history, politics, and economics about the greatest long-running geopolitical story of our time, China’s new Silk Road. It shows the big picture as well as the vital, ground-level details.”—Robert D. Kaplan, author of The Return of Marco Polo’s World and The Revenge of Geography

"China’s Belt and Road is reshaping the world’s economic and strategic landscape, and in this sweeping and thought-provoking tour, Jonathan Hillman reveals the gaps between Beijing’s grand rhetoric and ground reality. Required reading for the C-Suite and the Situation Room.”—Stephen J. Hadley, former U.S. National Security Advisor

“An outstanding book by one of the most interesting and original thinkers about the rise of China, the Belt and Road Initiative, and what both mean for the rest of the world. Filled with insights into the changing world of the twenty-first century—essential reading.”—Peter Frankopan, author of the international bestseller The Silk Roads: A New History of the World

"Jonathan Hillman offers an insightful contribution that helps cut through the noise on one of the most important projects of China’s foreign policy.”—Graham Allison, Harvard Kennedy School of Government

--This text refers to the hardcover edition.

About the Author

Jonathan E. Hillman, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), is director of the Reconnecting Asia Project, one of the most extensive databases tracking China's Belt and Road Initiative. He lives in Washington, DC.

Eric Jason Martin is a producer, director, and voice performer based in Los Angeles. He is the AudioFile Earphones and Audie Award-winning narrator of over 200 audiobooks, including works by Kurt Vonnegut, David Foster Wallace, Karin Slaughter, and Lee Child. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B088MMFF3X
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Yale University Press (September 29, 2020)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ September 29, 2020
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 5486 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 303 pages

Best Sellers Rank: #954,786 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #145 in Political Trades and Tariffs
- #269 in 21st Century World History
- #636 in History of China

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4.5 110 ratings

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Jonathan E Hillman

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Jonathan E. Hillman is a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and director of the Reconnecting Asia Project, one of the most extensive open-source databases tracking China’s Belt and Road Initiative. Prior to joining CSIS, he served as a policy adviser at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and worked as a researcher at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, the Council on Foreign Relations, and in Kyrgyzstan as a Fulbright scholar. A graduate of the Harvard Kennedy School and Brown University, he has written for the Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, and other outlets and received the 2019 Bracken-Bower Prize from the Financial Times.

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wsmrer

“This book, at its core, is about power.”

Reviewed in the United States on December 26, 2020

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Difficult to review this work I decided after reading the author’s Preface, Part One and then other selected sections.
There is seldom a paragraph that does not reference other authors’ works (book or article) a good portion of which I had seen before; many previous reviewed by me.

That is a form of ‘scholarship’ useful for a term paper, but my hope had been that Jonathan Hillman, having won a Fulbright scholarship to Kyrgyzstan and lived there for a period might open up further the topic of Eurasia cover so well by Daniel Markey’s China’s Western Horizon: Beijing and the New Geopolitics of Eurasia, and Bruno Maçães’ The Dawn of Eurasia: On the Trail of the New World Order by Bruno Maçães* – both exciting reads.
Hillman’s description: “Jonathan E. Hillman is a senior fellow with the CSIS Economics Program and director of the Reconnecting Asia Project, one of the most extensive open-source databases tracking China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)” could have served as warning.

It places him as a Beltway insider in an organization that a few years back (8/7/16) labeled by the New York Times ‘to Be Corrupt Arms Booster’; rebroadcast by FAIR (Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting); possibly before Jonathan’s arrival. But the work carries an overtone that is reflected in his page seven comment: “This book, at its core, is about power.” What might that mean?
For Hillman the future is a conflict for world hegemony – Xi Jinping’s BRI an effort to spread China’s influence and control – worth opposing.
Not the work I was hoping for; adversarial accounts abound.

How to rate? He is well informed, writes wells, and introduces his own reactions to the travel and interviewing he has done; but boring if familiar with the topic like yesterday’s newspaper and an overlaying theme of Chinese incompetence. Markey and Maçães push the topic open with fresh views; an exciting region of the world long ignored.
4 stars
*See also: Bruno Maçães, Belt and Road: A Chinese World Order.

7 people found this helpful

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Mike B

Great Perspective on Future History

Reviewed in the United States on June 4, 2022

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This is a fascinating book that provides great detail on China's ambitions and folly. It puts in perspective the Belt Road Initiative in a way I have not understood before, and I have read many articles on the project. Anyone who wants a no holds barred look at this history in the making should read this book. The future of the Belt Raod Initiative is chilling any way you look at it, as the book adeptly explains. Kudos to Jonathan Hillman for a well researched and important read.

One person found this helpful

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Amazon Customer

The definitive story of China's BRI

Reviewed in the United States on September 30, 2020

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Books, think tank reports, and conversations amongst policymakers tend to land on one of two extremes when about China: either the superpower is a threat to be stopped or an opportunity to be leveraged. China's BRI is either a nefarious and strategically thought out path to world domination or a brilliant vision for global development. With this book, Hillman establishes a critical and missing middle ground in the China conversation, one characterized by grand vision on the one hand and murky details on the other. Rewards only outsized by associated risks. A compelling vision that could accelerate or hinder China's global influence, largely based on its own choices moving forward. Hillman grounds China's aspirations in history and his own vast personal experience across Eurasia, wrapping the story up in beautifully written and accessible storytelling.

10 people found this helpful

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Lisa F.

Learn About China's Belt & Road "Initiative"

Reviewed in the United States on July 2, 2021

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This is a critical book that everyone needs to read. Planned to be "finished" in 2049, really it must be stopped the environmental devasatation will be great and the debt traps are starting already. Great book!

2 people found this helpful

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Rodney

Well researched, at the top of his game

Reviewed in the United States on May 3, 2021

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Jon is probably the clearest observable of events related to China that some of us missed completely. A must read for all China readers and observable.

3 people found this helpful

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Thomas Rasmussen

Good information and layout.

Reviewed in the United States on November 22, 2020

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Comprehensive and easy to understand, this book was easy to understand for a layperson such as myself. The author did a good job of zooming in on each region.

3 people found this helpful

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Matthews

Excellent detail and analysis

Reviewed in the United States on December 1, 2020

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Comprehensive book on many aspects of China today. Essential reading. The author has added knowledge that is hard to find.

2 people found this helpful

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Alexander Vogel

An insightful book on a topic that will define the world moving forward.

Reviewed in the United States on December 2, 2020

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Hillman's writing brings the topic to life.

3 people found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

Gethin Darklord

Rather disappointing

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 25, 2020

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This book is really an extended essay criticising BRI and leavened with interesting personal anecdote. About half of its length is a list of sources and an index. Although successive chapters discuss separate projects or skeins the book does not include a clear description of the initiative whether because the BRI is unclear itself or not is unsaid. The various chapters which discuss parts of the BRI - for example in Sri Lanka lack much depth of analysis and a similar amount of time googling as it takes one to read the book would probable leave one wiser. The personal anecdotes are of interest around a dinner table but lack depth of insight.

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