China's progress towards becoming a regional hegemony One Belt One Road initiative: The case of Central Asia

This study examines the People's Republic of China's growing economic and political influence in Central Asia through one of the main instruments of this process, the One Belt One Road (OBOR) initiative. Within the framework of realist theory, the concepts of power and hegemony are discussed theoretically, followed by an analysis of China's historical and intellectual foundations through elements such as Confucianism, the Tianxia paradigm, the traditional tributary system, and the "Century of Humiliation." The evolution of foreign policy from the Mao era to the Xi Jinping era is analyzed in detail, with particular emphasis on the impact of economic reforms and the opening-up policy on diplomacy. In the final part, China's engagement in Central Asia and the geopolitical and economic implications of the OBOR initiative are examined comprehensively. Central Asia, with its energy resources, trade routes, and geographic location, occupies the strategic center of the Asian continent, making it critical for both China and other major powers. For China, Central Asia is significant not only for economic development and trade expansion but also for enhancing its regional influence, safeguarding its strategic interests, and becoming a more decisive actor in the balance of power. The Belt and Road Initiative aims to consolidate China's influence in Central Asia while offering an alternative to Western-centered power structures within a multipolar world order. In this context, the initiative is viewed as a tool that, while increasing the economic dependence of regional states on China, makes Beijing's growing influence more visible and concretizes its hegemonic tendency. The study also approaches China's expanding presence from a comparative perspective with Russia, a historically dominant actor in the region, identifying both converging and competing aspects of their influence in Central Asia. In conclusion, the Belt and Road Initiative is not merely an economic project but a strategic foreign policy initiative that leverages Central Asia's geopolitical significance to consolidate China's growing influence and bring it closer to a position of regional hegemony.