The student scientific group "International Relations and Diplomacy" under the leadership of Candidate of Pol. Sciences, Associate Professor Svitlana DMYTRASHKO is participating in the competition for the best scientific group (problem group) at Ushinsky University. According to the rules of the competition, in the second round, a meeting of the scientific group must be held on a topic that corresponds to the direction of the scientific group's research.

"The Soft Power of the Celestial Empire: How China Shapes a New World" is the topic of today's meeting of the scientific group. The main report was delivered by Kateryna PISKUN, a 4th-year student of the specialty "Political Science". The disputants were Olga PESHTEREVA and Anatoliy KAZYUK, 3rd-year students of the specialty "Political Science".

Important areas of China's soft power were considered: educational diplomacy as part of the soft power strategy aimed at strengthening international influence and improving China's image on the global stage; The People’s Republic of China actively uses economic initiatives as a tool of soft power to strengthen its influence in the world. A key project in this strategy is the Belt and Road Initiative (the BRI), launched in 2013; as part of the overall soft power strategy, along with economic and educational initiatives, China is actively promoting its own digital technologies. Chinese technology giants, including Huawei, ByteDance (owner of TikTok), and Alibaba, play a key role in this process; as part of a multi-layered soft power strategy, China is not limited to economics, education, or technology — it also actively uses symbolism and emotional influence to strengthen international ties. One of the striking examples is the so-called “panda diplomacy,” which combines elements of cultural exchange, ecology, and politics. China has built a comprehensive and strategically coordinated system of soft power that combines institutional support, digital expansion, educational cooperation, and information influence. This allows it to effectively strengthen its position in the international arena not only through economic or military power, but also through positive perception in the eyes of the world community. In particular, the educational and cultural center "Confucius Institute" of South Ukrainian National Pedagogical University named after K.D. Ushynsky was founded in 2012 in partnership with the Harbin Engineering University (the PRC). It offers students professional Chinese language training and is part of the network of Confucius Institutes in Ukraine, which were opened on the basis of several universities and are actively operating in different cities. They offer Chinese language courses for all interested parties, organize cultural events, exhibitions, film screenings, lectures and seminars that help Ukrainians better understand China, its traditions and modern trends.

The chosen topic of the scientific circle meeting has political and scientific relevance. It is important for Ukraine to interact with strong Chinese diplomacy, to build strategic relations with the PRC as an integral and sovereign state.

We sincerely thank you for organizing the student science club competition and clearly stated requirements for the two rounds of the competition, as this initiative allows us to improve the scientific work of students and improve the activities of science clubs.