China in International Organizations and Global Initiatives: Evolution and Implementation of Foreign Policy (1991–2025)

The subject of this study is the evolution and implementation of the foreign policy of the People’s Republic of China in a multilateral format from 1991 to 2025. The research focuses on China’s foreign policy practice within international organizations and global initiatives in the context of the transformation of the post-bipolar international system. The study examines the main stages in the development of China’s multilateral foreign policy, including adaptation to the post–Cold War international environment, the institutionalization of participation in international organizations, and the subsequent use of global initiatives as a means of shaping the international agenda. Particular attention is paid to the role of international organizations, regional mechanisms, and initiative-based formats within China’s system of foreign policy instruments and to their long-term evolution in a historical perspective. The research employs historical and comparative-historical methods, as well as elements of structural-functional analysis, enabling a dynamic examination of China’s multilateral foreign policy in relation to changes in the international system. The scientific novelty of the study lies in its integrated analysis of China’s participation in international organizations and global initiatives as a single evolutionary process over the period 1991–2025. A stage-based framework is proposed, reflecting changes in the forms of foreign policy practice from adaptive participation to institutionalization and then to initiative-driven agenda formation. It is demonstrated that the multilateral format gradually became a structural component of China’s foreign policy, while global initiatives complemented rather than replaced participation in international organizations. The findings contribute to a deeper understanding of the behavior of rising powers within multilateral institutions and are relevant for further research in the history of international relations and Chinese foreign policy.