The article examines the institutions of people’s diplomacy as a significant element of the social dimension of Russian-Chinese relations amid the formation of a multipolar system of international relations. The subject of the study is the activities of public and semi-official institutions involved in the development of cultural, educational, youth, and interregional cooperation between the Russian Federation and the People's Republic of China. Special attention is paid to the legal and regulatory foundations of people’s diplomacy, as well as the analysis of the practical activities of such structures as the Friendship Societies of Russia and China, the Russian-Chinese Commission for Humanitarian Cooperation, the Russian-Chinese Committee for Friendship, Peace and Development, and overseas cultural centers. The article reveals their role in strengthening intercivilizational dialogue, forming a positive image of the partner country, and expanding the social base of bilateral strategic interaction. The research aims to identify the place and significance of people’s diplomacy in the system of contemporary Russian-Chinese relations, as well as to determine its potential as a tool of “soft power” and sustainable social cooperation. The methodological framework of the study consists of the concepts of people’s and public diplomacy, theories of “soft power,” as well as systematic, institutional, and structural-functional approaches employing methods of analysis and synthesis. The scientific novelty of the article lies in the comprehensive analysis of the institutions of people’s diplomacy of Russia and China as an interconnected and multilevel system functioning in close coordination with the official foreign policies of both countries. The work demonstrates that people’s diplomacy is not a secondary or auxiliary element of bilateral relations but serves as an independent and institutionally formalized channel of social interaction capable of exerting a long-term stabilizing influence on Russian-Chinese partnership. It concludes that friendship societies, intergovernmental humanitarian commissions, public committees, and overseas cultural centers perform complementary functions, combining strategic planning, public initiative, and mass cultural communication. It is substantiated that it is through these institutions that sustainable public support for bilateral cooperation is formed, intercultural barriers are reduced, and dialogues between civilizations are strengthened. The results of the study confirm that the further development of people’s diplomacy is an important condition for deepening comprehensive partnership and strategic interaction between Russia and China.
Yuanjing Qian (Thu,) studied this question.