The role of identity and strategic narratives on public perceptions of China: the case of the New Silk Road in Kazakhstan

As China attempts to fulfil the cooperation priorities of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), criticism has mostly focused on developing people-to-people connectivity. Through Silk Road strategic narratives, China seeks to contend with public perceptions that do not always see the benefit of Chinese investment. By strategically dubbing the BRI the ‘New Silk Road’ in Chinese foreign propaganda, has China been able to operationalise geopolitical imaginaries to affect local perceptions? Based on a representative survey sample of 965 Kazakhstani citizens, this study assesses whether the citizens’ historic beliefs linked to identity influence their current perceptions of the BRI and China’s economic, political, and technological influence in the region. Findings suggest that geopolitical discourse is most successful when it evokes local identities through historical narratives and discourses.