International Competition in China, 1899-1991

China's recent economic reforms have opened its economy to the world. This policy, however, is not new: in the late nineteenth century, the United States put forward the Open Door Policy as a counter to European exclusive 'spheres of influence' in China. This book examines and re-evaluates China's Open Door Policy, considering it from its inception in 1899 right through to the post-1978 reforms and relating these changes to the various shifts in China’s international relations. The book argues that, although the policy was characterised as United States 'economic imperialism' during the Cold War, in reality it helped China retain its sovereignty and territorial integrity.