About

About me

I am a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the School of Economics, Politics and International Relations, University of Kent, where I work on a project on knowledge production about China in Global Majority countries with Dr Jamie Gruffydd-Jones. I am also affiliated with the Sheffield Political Economy Research Institute (SPERI), and the Oxus Society for Central Asian Affairs. I am a co-convenor of BISA’s East Europe and Eurasia (EEES) working group.

I hold a PhD in Politics and International Relations (University of Sheffield), which I conducted thanks to an ESRC White Rose DTP Pathway Award for a thesis titled “Amir Timur in Shanghai: Locating agency in Uzbekistan-China relations”. My work critiques the top-down dimension of Chinese normative power by focusing on Uzbekistan’s normative agency in its relations with the People’s Republic of China. My research agenda revolves around three key themes:
1) the political economy of South-South cooperation;
2) the political economy of collective imaginaries, public opinion and political communication (machine learning/LLMs);
3) grassroots and elite normative power and agency in the Global Majority.

I hold an MA in Social Research (University of Sheffield), an MA in International Relations (University of Bologna) and a BA in Chinese language, culture and society (Ca’ Foscari University of Venice). I was also a visiting scholar at the Renmin University of China (Beijing-2016), George Washington University (Washington DC-2022), the University of World Economy and Diplomacy (Tashkent-2022/2025), Universidad Austral (Buenos Aires-2025), Nazarbayev University (Astana-2025).

I also work with policymakers (UK FCDO, US Department of State) and private sector organisations such as Global Partners Governance in London, UK, or Central Asian Barometer in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, on projects connected with China’s role in Central Asia. I regularly engage with media such as Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Voice of America, The Diplomat, Vlast, the Globe and Mail, RAI Radio Tre, and Der Standard.

I am a member of the Board of Directors of ASIAC – Italian Association for Studies on Central Asia and the Caucasus, and member of the editorial board of the journal Studies on Central Asia and the Caucasus.

Latest Publications:

– Globalizations. (2025). Decentring narratives of (de)globalization and crisis: Uzbekistan’s ‘everyday’ political economy amidst Russia’s war in Ukraine.

– UK Government’s China Audit. (2025). Engaging plural China with industrial cooperation, investment in localised research and specialised diplomatic teams. London: Foreign Affairs Committee, House of Commons, UK Parliament.

– Studies on Central Asia and the Caucasus. (2025). “Uzbekistan joins the Global Majority: A protagonist of reglobalisation?”. Vol. 2.

– Central Asia Barometer. (2024). “Beyond the Silk Road: Navigating the Complexities of Central Asia’s Public Opinion on China”. With J. Neafie, R. Gabdulhakov, I. Supyaldiyarov, and K. Sheraliev.

– Central Asian Survey. (2024). “Central Asian Studies in the People’s Republic of China: A Structural Topic Model”. (With B. Jardine).

– The International Spectator. (2024). “Changing Images? Italian Twitter Discourse on China and the United States During the First Wave of COVID-19”. (With G. Sciorati and C.R. Combei).