Chinese Official Negotiators: Mindset and Practice

Asia Paper December 17, 2012, pp. 34

Four types of Chinese official negotiators are identified in terms of their negotiating mindset and practice: the avoiding negotiator, the accommodative negotiator, the persuading negotiator and the problem-solving negotiator. The evolution of the mindset and practice of Chinese official negotiators is explained from four perspectives: traditional Confucian culture, revolutionary culture, Chinese bureaucracy and international conventions. It is shown that with the fading of revolutionary culture, the resurgence of traditional culture and the deepening of the course of opening up, Chinese negotiators will tend to be more of the problem-solving type, who conduct negotiation in order to advance both China’s national interests and the interests of international community.

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