Xinjiang and China's Rise in Central Asia - A History

The recent conflict between indigenous Uighurs and Han Chinese demonstrates that Xinjiang is a major troublespot for China, with Uighur demands for increased autonomy, but where the Chinese are keen to integrate the province more firmly within China. This book traces the development of Xinjiang from the collapse of the Qing empire in the early twentieth century to the present. It outlines the Chinese policy of integration, showing how the Chinese have pursued this through economic development and in-migration of Han Chinese, and how the policy of integration is related to Chinaa (TM)s concern for security and to its pursuit of increased power and influence in Central Asia. It shows how Chinaa (TM)s concerns and policies, although pursued with vigour in recent decades, are of long-standing, and how domestic problems and policies in Xinjiang have for a long time been closely bound up with wider international relations issues.