Gerry Segal, a world expert on China, was a prolific writer. Before he died in 1999 the journal Foreign Affairs published his very provocative and significant article Does China Matter?

This book has been developed from Gerry Segal's article and examines the themes and questions he brought to light. The book includes a copy of the original article and is followed by chapters which look at China in the context of the world economy, Asian economy, as a global military power, as a regional military power, within world and Asian politics and within contemporary world and Asian culture.