Rules as Power: The Contest for Rule-Making Authority in Digital Public Diplomacy among the US, China, and the EU

Abstract

The core of international competition in the digital age has shifted to the struggle for rule-making power. As the principal actors, the United States, China, and the European Union are reshaping the global digital order through digital public diplomacy. From a political economy perspective, this paper constructs a three-dimensional analytical framework—"Strategic Positioning-Rule Tools-Efficacy Analysis"—to examine the divergent strategies of these three actors in the realms of technical standards, data governance, and digital trade. The study finds that the United States leverages value-based alliances to promote exclusive rule hegemony, China achieves breakthroughs through development-oriented alternative rules, and the EU constructs standard barriers by capitalizing on its normative power. The contest for rule-making authority is, in essence, a process of reconstructing power structures in the digital age, the outcomes of which will profoundly shape the landscape of global digital governance. Developing countries must seek strategic autonomy amid great power rule competition, enhancing their rule-making influence through technological localization and multilateral cooperation.