Introduction. Asia in transition: beyond the hegemonic rivalry between the United States and China

Pablo Pareja Alcaraz, profesor agregado Serra Húnter de Relaciones Internacionales, Universitat Pompeu Fabra. pablo.pareja@upf.edu. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9267-8211 

Inés Arco Escriche, investigadora, CIDOB. iarco@cidob.org. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0000-0761-4644 

This introductory paper raises the need to understand the regional dynamics in Asia from a perspective that looks past the traditional hegemonic rivalry between the United States and China. To do this, it questions the literature that confines the analysis of this geographical area to realist and liberal institutionalist perspectives, and it identifies its materialist, Eurocentric and binary biases. After reviewing the evolution and main pillars of the Asian regional order, the paper argues that Asia finds itself in a process of transformation that reveals a complex, open and plural regional system characterised by new dynamics of competition, multilateral cooperation and strategic autonomy. It also introduces the papers that make up this special issue, which shine a spotlight on the strategies and agency of key actors such as Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, the Philippines and ASEAN.

Keywords: Asia, hegemonic rivalry, Asian regional order, strategic autonomy, multilateralism

How to cite this article: Pareja Alcaraz, Pablo y Arco Escriche, Inés. «Introducción. Asia en transición: más allá de la rivalidad hegemónica entre Estados Unidos y China». Revista CIDOB d’Afers Internacionals, n.º 141 (diciembre de 2025), p. 07-20. DOI: doi.org/10.24241/rcai.2025.141.3.7

Revista CIDOB d’Afers Internacionals, nº 141
Quadrimestral (Octobe-December 2025)
ISSN:1133-6595 | E-ISSN:2013-035X
DOI: https://doi.org/10.24241/rcai.2025.141.3.7

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