CONTEMPORARY GEOSTRATEGY OF CHINA IN CENTRAL ASIA

The article is dedicated to the study of China's contemporary geostrategy in Central Asia (СА). It is shown that the main principles of a state's geostrategy are typically not outlined in official documents but are practically implemented through the state's strategy on the international stage. It has been revealed that China's regional geostrategy is primarily aimed at exerting “effective influence” and securing its geopolitical and geoeconomic interests in Central Asian countries. China's geopolitical interests in the region consist, first of all, in creating a reliable security field on its western geostrategic “flank” and protecting the acquired geoeconomic positions in the region. It has been established that the transregional project “One Belt, One Road” serves as the main economic “core” of China's geostrategy in Eurasia as a whole and in CA in particular. The “Middle Corridor” (Trans-Caspian International Transport Route) for communication between China and Europe through Central Asian countries (bypassing Russia) has the greatest prospects. China has achieved economic power in CA, becoming the main trading partner for the countries of the region and the leading investor for their economies. The PRC is able to effectively use the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) as an international institution to secure its interests in CA. China is showing its ability to organize the cooperation of Central Asian countries in the security sphere. The article analyzes the specific features of China's geostrategy toward individual Central Asian states. The “soft power” of the PRC is a set of effective means for implementing geostrategy in the region: creating an attractive image of the Chinese authoritarian regime; demonstration of the benefits of the economic model of the PRC; spread of ideas about the prestige of Chinese culture, education, science, etc. It is suggested that China's expansionist geostrategy may lead to the establishment of its latent hegemony in certain Central Asian countries.