Hybrid Conflict Behaviour and the Evolving Global Order

<jats:p>This study examines China's approach to regional disputes in Asia within the framework of the Thomas–Kilmann Conflict Mode Model developed by Kenneth Thomas and Ralph Kilmann. The primary aim of the study is to reveal the nature of China's foreign policy within the evolving global order by conducting a comparative analysis of China's behaviour in the South China Sea, regarding Taiwan, in the China–India border disputes, and within the ASEAN context. The article's central argument is that China's conflict behaviours cannot be explained by a fixed strategic logic; rather, these behaviours vary according to contextual factors such as threat perception, sovereignty sensitivities, great power competition and regional institutional structures. This situation demonstrates that the behaviour of rising powers can no longer be analysed using one-dimensional categories, and that the evolving global order possesses a more hybrid, flexible and multi-layered character.</jats:p>