Author: Arushi Jain

IntroductionChina has become the world’s leading manufacturer of clean energy technologies, producing over 80 per cent of global solar panels while controlling significant shares of battery manufacturing and critical mineral processing (International Energy Agency [IEA], 2022). As countries accelerate their energy transitions, this manufacturing strength is giving China a growing source of geopolitical influence. The question is not whether China leads the renewable energy economy, but how that leadership shapes its relationships with other countries. Much of the existing literature explains China’s expanding role through the idea of green soft power—the ability of states to build influence through climate leadership…