Abstract

This article examines the implications of China’s rise, peaceful or otherwise, as a major world power on its relationship with Thailand, and how this “rise” will affect the future of Sino-Thai relations. China has become a great power as the result of its phenomenal economic growth. While China has emphasized that it would not behave like great powers of the past, it has nevertheless changed its approach to its foreign policy and its relations with countries throughout Asia-Pacific region. Thailand must recognize the changes brought about by China’s rise and find ways to adapt to these changes so it can properly maintain its strategic engagement with China, bilaterally and multilaterally, as China’s “real” partner in the region.