While global headlines often frame China’s rise through the Belt and Road Initiative and new security partnerships, Backlash: China’s Struggle for Influence in Central Asia (Oxford University Press) tells a different story. In this new book, Edward Lemon and Bradley Jardine show that China’s power projection is far from a one-way street—it is negotiated, resisted, and reshaped by local actors across Central Asia. Drawing on an original protest event dataset, rich case studies, and interviews conducted in all five republics, Backlash reveals the frictions, bargains, and complexities that define China’s engagement abroad—and what they tell us about authoritarian influence, infrastructure diplomacy, and contested globalization.
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