Money Talks: A Study on Economic Statecraft and Voting in the General Assembly of the United Nations

Can great powers leverage economic tools to gain influence over a smaller state? Within this thesis the relationship between foreign aid and foreign policy alignment between China and the ASEAN states are examined. Using data on Chinese foreign aid and voting data from the General Assembly of the United Nations, the thesis examines this relationship with the use of statistical analysis, more specifically employing Ordinary Least Squared-estimation. Furthermore, the study examines different aspects of foreign policy alignment that Chinese Foreign aid might influence, by using different dependent variables. The study concludes that there is support for Chinese foreign aid influencing voting pattern in the UNGA regarding human rights, however, there is no support for Chinese foreign aid influencing voting pattern in general or on US-important topics.