Chinese Diplomacy Prior to the First World War

On January 1, 1912, the Republic of China was established. Although it is widely accepted that the Republic of China inherited the diplomatic legacy of the late Qing, its reasons for doing so and how it happened have not been thoroughly investigated. The legacy’s inheritance and foreign recognition were closely related. Following the establishment of the Republic of China, winning the recognition of the major powers was the first priority in its diplomatic efforts. Whether or not recognition was given would have an impact on the government’s foreign exchange and loans. In order to gain recognition from other countries, the Beijing government had no choice but to accept the treaties imposed on the late Qing government by the foreign powers as fait accompli and continue to give the foreigners their special status and privileges under those treaties. Using the 1911 Revolution as an opportunity, Britain and Russia meddled in China’s internal affairs, and separatist movements emerged in Tibet and Outer Mongolia. During this period, another top diplomatic goal for the Republic of China was to get loans from the major powers to deal with the financial crisis. After Yuan Shikai became president, political disputes increased because he was eager to reduce the influence of the revolutionaries. During the early years of the Republic, Chinese diplomacy was more challenging than that of the late Qing due to both internal and external circumstances. Meanwhile, the First World War broke out in Europe.