China

China is Cutting the US Out of the Middle East with an Axis of the Sanctioned

by Juan Cole

Recent American policies have squandered an opportunity to engage poductively with Iran and Saudi Arabia and instead pushed them toward stronger economic development relationships with China. 

Do Subtle Shifts in China's References to Divided Korea Signal Pragmatism on Taiwan?

by Hu Ping and Perry Link

In seeking to navigate Beijing's seeming intransigence on recognizing Taiwan, the United States can look to the PRC's subtle shift in rhetoric: it has stopped including divided Korea as a comparison to an unacceptable "two China" policy and categorized it as "one country, two governments," suggesting steps toward pragmatic acceptance. 

What's Behind the Spy Balloon Hysteria?

by Heather Cox Richardson

The February 2023 Chinese Spy Balloon Incident will be remembered by historians—not for its international significance but for the over-the-top response of a Republican opposition detached from reality. 

China's 2022: Protest, Ceremony, and Surprise

by Jeffrey Wasserstrom and William Yang

China's recent oscillations between official ceremonies of authority and insurgent protests presents a complex picture of a Chinese Communist Party struggling to maintain authority despite its formidable mechanisms of surveillance and coercion. 

The US-China Relationship: Why It Collapsed, How it Can Be Fixed

by Jake Werner

The split between the US and China precedes the leadership of Biden, Trump, and Xi, as politicians in both countries have increasingly come to see the others' prosperity as a threat. Solving the split requires looking to the problems of global market capitalism that exacerbated the rift. 

Don't Forget about the Nuclear Danger over Taiwan

by Michael Klare

Ukraine isn't the only potential nuclear flashpoint. The United States and China need to begin negotiations to limit the risk around the conflict over Taiwan's status. 

Biden's Taiwan Rhetoric Risks Antagonizing China For No Gain

by Stephen Wertheim

The United States' "One China" policy is ambivalent, awkward and dissatisfying. But it's served to prevent a destructive war for decades. Biden's recent comments threaten to destabilize the arrangement. 

Biden's Remarks on Taiwan are Potentially Dangerous Provocation to China

by Stephen Wertheim

In itself, Biden's statement about defending Taiwan doesn't raise any possibilities that the Chinese military hasn't already considered. But it does threaten the American posture of "strategic ambiguity" that underlies diplomatic discussions. 

How Will History Remember Xi?

by Robert Brent Toplin

Despite China's growth as an economic and military force, Xi Jinping's authoritarian government may ultimately be seen as a drag on the nation's prosperity and the flourishing of the Chinese population. 

The Democratic Potential of China's Grassroots Intellectuals

by Sebastian Veg

Chinese intellectuals working outside the protection of state-controlled universites have a perilous existence, but carry on the struggle against the regime's efforts to impose orthodoxy on the nation's history. 

The Xi Era Demands New Ways of Understanding China

by Jeffrey Wasserstrom

This is the introductory essay to a special issue on contemporary China. 

How China's Nuclear Arms Buildup Will Make a Tripolar World, and What it Means for Peace

by Andrew F. Krepinevich, Jr.

"There is nothing the United States can do to prevent China from joining it and Russia as the world’s top nuclear powers, but there are things that U.S. strategists and defense planners can do to mitigate the consequences."

Alfred McCoy: Ukraine War May Birth New World Order

The historian of international relations predicts that the Ukraine invasion and NATO's response will have the effect of tying Russia and China together in an alliance that will reshape the dynamics of international relations, trade, and military power. 

Is Ukraine Another Turning Point in Russia-China Relations?

Although a close alliance would allow both China and Russia to overcome American influence in the world, this alone has never been sufficient to align the two nations. 

China Digs Its Own Grave (and Ours, Too)

by Alfred McCoy

History is a poor tool for predicting how the post-fossil fuel world will be organized. But it's clear that a successful world order will have to be based in acknowledging the climate crisis. 

Weaponizing Accusations of Racism to Squash Political Criticism of China

by Jonathan Zimmerman

Two recent incidents show the dangers of allowing a foreign government to leverage college speech and bias codes to squelch criticism, and the need for administrators to understand the difference. 

The Public Will be the Ultimate Judge of Whether the Olympics Soften China's Image

by Michael J. Socolow

China is doing all it can to use the winter games as a statement of its belonging in the world community. It will be up to the viewers to ask critical questions about the media coverage and spectacle. 

A Tale of Two Olympics: Changed China in a Changed World

by Joe Renouard

Since the 2008 Beijing games, the People's Republic of China's vastly increased global economic power and the COVID pandemic have changed the core narrative around the current winter games. It remains to be seen whether the Olympics will signal a turn back to openness or the intransigence of a confident world power. 

Will the Diplomatic Boycott of the Olympics Have any Effect on China?

by Meghan Herwig

After Tiananmen Square, it became clear that American foreign policy was limited by other Asian nation's growing dependence on China. Today, as regional relations shift, will a more effective human rights advocacy be possible? 

None Dare Call it "Encirclement"

by Michael Klare

While the Pentagon won't use the term, American military policy is clearly aiming at surrounding China to reduce its influence in Asia. This revival of Cold War-era geopolitics is a dangerous provocation.