Did Confucius Dream about the Balance of Power?

Some suggest that the World Majority’s countries constitute civilizations in which the history of interstate relations “has never been understood in terms of competition, fierce struggle, or anarchy, which can be counterbalanced only by power predominance of individual states or alliances.” This thesis is considered in light of East Asia’s traditional tributary system, and the degree to which it retains influence on modern China’s views on international relations. Foreign policy ideas, characteristic of Sinocentric East Asia, are analyzed using classical ancient and medieval texts. The results cast doubt on a historical-tradition-based conceptualization of the ‘World Majority.’