This book presents a comprehensive analysis of governance and ethno-nationality policies in China, with a particular emphasis on the historical strategies employed by the Chinese state in managing its relations with non-Han nationalities and ethno-religious groups. The study employs an interdisciplinary approach to examine the state's cultural and political integration efforts, or, more precisely, its expansionist ambitions. This is achieved by analysing the manner in which the Chinese state, conceptualised as comprising two interrelated dimensions - cultural China and political China - extends its influence both within its official borders and in the territories under its control. In this context, the book presents a critical analysis of the state's assimilationist practices, which are designed to transform a diverse socio-cultural and ethno-national landscape into a cohesive and unified socio-cultural framework. These policies are characterised by a synthesis of traditional Chinese cultural ideologies with contemporary Marxist and nationalist doctrines, a strategy aptly described by the author as "assimilation with Chinese characteristics". The analytical framework allows for an examination of the implementation of governance and assimilation strategies towards non-Chinese minority groups, with the Uyghur case serving as a focal example to illustrate these dynamics.

Abdürresit Celil Karluk earned his Ph.D. in Sociology at Hacettepe University (Ankara) between 1997 and 2003. From 2003 to 2014, he served as a faculty member in the Department of Sociology at Minzu University of China, where his academic work centered on the sociological dynamics and interethnic relations among China's diverse nationalities. In 2014, Karluk relinquished his position at Minzu University and subsequently pursued an academic career in Türkiye. From 2015 to 2018, he served at Ankara Yildirim Beyazit University, and since 2018 he has held the position of Senior Professor in the Department of International Relations at Ankara Haci Bayram Veli University. His teaching and research interests encompass the sociology of ethnicity and minorities, social and cultural change, Chinese politics towards non-Chinese, Türkiye-China relations, and the Uyghurs both within and beyond China's borders. Professor Karluk has authored over seventy scholarly publications, including journal articles, book chapters, and six published books, in Chinese, English, Turkish, and Uyghur. He is also the founder and Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of East Asian Studies in Türkiye .