An Analysis of the Chinese School of International Relations: Moral Realism

The purpose of this article is to review the theory of international relations from the perspective of Chinese scholars. One of the most important Chinese theories of international relations is moral realism, which originates from the Tsinghua school. The main question of this article is what is the attitude of this theory in international relations? Moral realism seeks to show why and how an emerging power such as China can replace existing hegemonic power. As one of the pioneers of moral realism, Yan Xuetong sees the cause of this issue as a quality of political leadership. Active and pioneering political leadership as an essential element of a country's political strength can, by adhering to state and global ethics, multiply a nation's comprehensive national strength (resulting from political, economic, cultural, military capability) in an emerging country, increase its international authority, and ultimately place it in the leadership position of the international order.