New Books in East Asian Studies

On Sino-Vietnamese Border Relations

Jul 31, 2024

Dr. Qingfei Yin, an Assistant Professor of International History at LSE, delves into the intricate history of Sino-Vietnamese relations and the significance of borderlands. She discusses her upcoming book, which unveils how Cold War dynamics influenced state-building and regional interactions. The conversation highlights grassroots perspectives, the complexities of collaboration and competition, and the evolving nature of borders in East Asia. Dr. Yin also critiques traditional narratives, emphasizing the importance of peripheral nations in global historical contexts.

48:04

Episode guests

Qingfei Yin

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Episode notes

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Quick takeaways

Dr. Qingfei Yin emphasizes the importance of examining Sino-Vietnamese relations through local interactions to understand the complexities of state collaboration and competition.

The discussion critiques the application of modern nation-state frameworks to historical Sino-Vietnamese relations, advocating for a broader historical perspective that encompasses cultural exchanges over centuries.

Deep dives

The Evolution of Research Interests

The speaker outlines their academic journey leading to a focus on Sino-Vietnamese relations. Initially interested in China's foreign relations broadly, they recognized the complexity of China's interactions with its neighboring countries, especially during the Cold War. They decided to specialize further by examining relations with Indochina, identifying it as both complicated and rewarding. Local and historical contexts became essential, leading them to explore interactions at the grassroots level rather than just at state or party levels.

Intro

2min

Sino-Vietnamese Relations: A Historical Perspective

29min

Redefining Borders and State Dynamics in East Asia

3min

Reexamining Cold War Narratives Through Peripheral Perspectives

4min

Exploring Borderlands and Sino-Southeast Asian Relations

4min

Exploring the Intricacies of Sino-Vietnamese Relations and Southeast Asia's Role

5min

In this episode, host SEAC Director John Sidel talks with Dr Qingfei Yin, SEAC Associate and Assistant Professor of International History at LSE. Dr Qingfei Yin talks about her new book State Building in Cold War Asia Comrades and Competitors on the Sino-Vietnamese Border (due out with Cambridge University Press in August 2024), explains how she became interested in her research on China and Vietnam relations and the borderlands between the two countries, and discusses other projects she has begun working on beyond her forthcoming book.

Dr Qingfei Yin is Assistant Professor of International History (China and the World) at LSE. As a historian of contemporary China and inter-Asian relations, her research focuses on China’s relations with its Asian neighbours, Asian borderlands, and the Cold War in Asia. She is particularly interested in how the global Cold War interacted with state-building in marginal societies. Her book State Building in Cold War Asia: Comrades and Competitors on the Sino-Vietnamese Border will be published by Cambridge University Press in August 2024. Subsequent projects focus on how capitalist Southeast Asian countries shaped China during the latter’s early reform era in the 1980s and the historical memory of the Sino-Vietnamese Cold War partnership in the two countries. Dr Yin is an alumna of the LSE-Peking University Double MSc in International Affairs Programme. She studied International Politics and History at Peking University for her undergraduate degree and completed her PhD in History at George Washington University. Before returning to LSE, she was Assistant Professor of History at Virginia Military Institute. She also serves as the Book Review Editor of Journal of Military History and on the Editorial Board of Cold War History.

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