ABSTRACT
This paper argues that Confucianism, far from being a static relic, functions today as an active ideological resource shaping governance, society, and international relations in East Asia. In China, the revival of Confucian thought since Deng Xiaoping has provided the Communist Party with cultural legitimacy, reinforced social order, and inspired distinct schools of international relations theory that challenge Western paradigms. In Japan, the wartime instrumentalization of Confucianism discredited it as a political framework, though its legacy persists in cultural practices. In Korea, Confucianism has evolved from state orthodoxy into a diffuse moral language, underpinning both social ethics and economic modernization while remaining contested in contemporary debates. By situating Confucianism within global politics, the paper demonstrates its continuing relevance as a culturally rooted alternative to Western universalism.