Development aid, peacebuilding and the Global South

China has emerged as a major development aid provider in recent decades. With an emphasis on South–South cooperation, it has promoted an alternative development model that places greater emphasis on hard infrastructure and less on normative foundations, while still purportedly promoting sustainability and a green transition. China has also been an active participant in United Nations peace operations, is expanding its security presence in fragile states and is becoming more proactive in conflict resolution. This theme of the SIPRI China and Asia Security Programme provides timely analysis of the drivers behind China’s major development initiatives and its growing footprint in the Global South. It also assesses the impact of Chinese policies in areas such as economic development, security sector reform and peacebuilding. The research areas include but are not limited to countries in Central/South Asia, South East Asia and Africa, with a particular focus on how Chinese activities are both informed by China’s foreign policy goals and advance its strategic interests.