Pol Sci 120B - How China Sees America - Reading Notes PDF

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How China Sees America — Reading Notes: Week 4 Page 1 The Sum of Beijing’s Fears Reason for China being a great power extent and strategic location of its territory size and dynamism of its population value and growth rate of its economy massive size of its share of global trade strength of its military China has significant national interest in every part of the world China is the only state widely seen as a possible threat to US predominance China’s foreign policy are defensive and have not changed much since the Cold War Era Blunt destabilizing influences from abroad avoid territorial losses reduce its neighbors’ suspicions sustain economic growth China’s internal and regional priorities have changes since it has become more integrated into the world economic system To define a global role that serves Chinese interests but also wins acceptance from other powers Managing the fraught US-Chinese relationship is the foremost foreign policy challenge Chinese policy makers puzzle over whether the US intends to use its power to help or hurt China The Chinese believe the US is a revisionist power that seeks to curtail China’s political influence and harm China’s interest The Four Rings China views the hazards against their Nation in four concentric rings 1. The entire territory that China administers or claims China believes that China’s political stability and territorial integrity are threatened by foreign actors and forces Foreign investors, development advisers, tourists and students swarm the country with ideas of how China should change Taiwan is ruled by its own government, recognized by 23 states and has security guarantee from the US 2. At China’s borders, concerns involve China’s relations with 14 adjacent countries No other country besides Russia has as many neighbors None of China’s neighbors view its core national interests as congruent with China's

5 of China’s neighbors it has gone to war with India, Japan, Russia, South Korea, Vietnam CHINA ALONE has the power of dealing with any of its neighbors in a purely bilateral context 3. Consists of the politics of the six distinct geopolitical regions that surround China : Northeast Asia, Oceania, continental Southeast Asia, maritime Southeast Asia, South Asia, Central Asia Each presents complex regional diplomatic and security problems 4. World far beyond China’s neighborhood China has only entered this circle for limited purposes 1. Secure sources of commodities 2. Gain access to markets and investments 3. Get diplomatic support for isolating Taiwan and Tibet’s Dalai Lama 4. Recruit allies for China’s position on international norms and legal regimes Page 2 Inscrutable America US is omnipresent in each of the 4 rings Chinese understanding of US motives determines how the Chinese deal with most of their security issues Every US presidents says China’s stability and prosperity is in the interest of the US US has done more than any other to contribute to Chinese modernization drew China into global market Gave access to markets, capital and technology Trained Chinese experts in science, technology, and international law etc. US military is deployed all around China’s periphery US maintains defense relationships with China’s neighbors US constantly pressures China over its economic policies and maintains a host of government and private programs that seek to influence Chinese civil society and politics 3 Perspectives of US contradictory actions 1. Chinese analysts see their country as heir to an agrarian, eastern strategic tradition that is pacifistic, defense minded, non expansionist and ethical 1. THEY SEE WESTERN STRATEGIC CULTURE AS militaristic, offense minded and selfish 2. Chinese view of the US is still informed by Marxist political thought 1. Believe that capitalist powers seek to exploit the rest of the world 2. Although China holds large amount of US debt, Chinese see Americans as getting the better deal by using cheap Chinese labor and credit to live beyond their means 3. American theories of international relations have become popular among young

Chinese policy analysts 1. CHIEF IR THEORY IN CHINA IS Offensive Realism 1. Holds that a country will try to control ints security environment to the full extent of its capabilities permit 1. Asserts that US seeks to make the ruling regime in China weaker and more pro-US 1. Support of this accusation ca be found in US call for democracy in Taiwan, Tibet, etc. Chinese analysts assert US will use its power to preserve and enhance its privileges and will treat efforts by other countries to protect their interests as threats to its own security As China rises, US will resist “On one hand the US realizes it needs China help on many regional and global issues; on the other hand the US is worried about a more powerful China and uses multiple means to delay its development and remake China with US values Page 3 US and Chinese priorities may not be off Both core security interests do not clash both gain mutual benefit from trade and other common interests CLASH Chinese believe China should stand up to the US militarily Believe that China can win a conflict by outpacing US military technology and take advantage of what they believe to be a superior more within China’s armed forces Who is the Revisionist? Strategist everywhere look at a states capabilities and intentions From Chinese POV, US economic, ideological and diplomatic capabilities are potentially devastating US military is globally deployed and technologically advanced, with concentration of fire power wound Chinese rim US Pacific Command (PACOM) is the largest of the US’ six regional combatant commands in terms of its geographic scope and non wartime manpower Operational capabilities of US forces in the Asia-Pacific are magnified by bilateral defense traits with Australia, Japan, New Zealand, Philippines, and South Korea Cooperative arrangement with other partners too US possess ~5,200 nuclear warheads US also has an extensive capability to damage Chinese economic interests US is China’s: Single most important market largest source of FDI

Largest source of advanced technology How US can damage Chinese economy More examples in text US legislators have proposed sanctioning China for artificially keeping the value of the yuan low to the benefit of Chinese exporters CALLED TRADE HAWKS Chinese strategist believe the US and allies could/would deny supplies of oil and metal ores to China during a military or economic crisis and that the US Navy could block China’s access to strategically crucial sea-lanes Ubiquity of the dollar in international trade and finance also gives the US ability to damage Chinese interests may drive down China’s dollar-dominated exports and foreign exchange reserves by printing dollar or increasing borrowing US poses potent ideological weapons and the willingness to use them After WW2, US power enshrined American principle in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Page 4 Chinese assert that the US uses ideas of democracy and human rights to delegitimize regimes that espouse alternative values such as socialism and Asian-style developmental authoritarianism Chinese say that at end of Cold War, Us became a revisionist power that tries to reshape the global environment further in its favor CHINESE VIEW US AS PROMOTING COLOR REVOLUTIONS TO BLUE (democracy) Exploiting Taiwan Skipped Page 5 The Perils of Pluralism The Taiwan Relations Act market the beginning of a trend toward congressional assertiveness on US China Policy Continuing to complicate the 2 countries relations 1989 Tiananmen incident shifted terms of debate in US Prior, China had been perceived as a liberalizing regime After, China propped into an atavistic dictatorship Collapse of USSR vitiated strategic imperative to cooperate with China Growing US Chinese economic ties creates friction on issues like piracy of US intellectual property Chinese controversies 1. China’s political system elicited opposition from human right org 2. population control policies anger antiabortion movement

3. repression of churches offends US christiains 4. reliance on coal and massive dams for energy upset environmental groups 5. rampant pracy and counterfeiting infuriate the film, software and pharmaceutical industries Americans who hold position supporting China on the lines of cooperation important for US farmers, exporters, banks, wall street Issues like NK and climate change more important than issues on rights or religion Sugarcoated Threats Chinese analysts try to ascertain US intentions by looking at statements from the executive branch as reliable guides to US strategy because in their political system, the executive branch dominates THESE STATEMENTS TAKE 2 FORMS 1. Reassure China that US intentions are benign 2. Reassure US public that US will never allow China’s rise to threaten US interests 1. THESE COMBINATIONS CREATE sugarcoated threats China is not a threat because its future does not depend on overturning the funamdental order of the international system does not seek to spread radical, anti-US ideologies Page 6 For US to cooperate with China — Bush Admin. Chine needs to explain its defense spending, intentions, doctrine and military exercise reduce trade surplus with US and cooperate with US on Iran and NK China should give up closed politics For US to cooperate with China — Obama Admin. Strategic reassurance — Just as US must make clear that we are prepared to welcome China’s arrival as a prosperous and successful power, CHINA MUST reassure the rest of the world that its development and growing global role will not come at the expense of the security and well-being of others Reassure that its build up does not present a threat increase its military transparency in order to assure all countries in th rest of Asia and world about its intention respect the rule of law and universal norms These statements are taken by Chinese to mean Washington wants cooperation on its own terms seeks to deter China from developing a military capability to defend its interests intends to promote change in the character of the Chinese Regime Chinese logic on why US aided their modernization

1. US contained China as long as it could 2. When Cold War tension grew, US had to engage China to maintain hand against USSR 3. US believed engagement would turn China towards democracy 4. Hope that US would gain strategic base on mainland of Asia it lost in 1949 VIEW HOLDS THAT CONTAINMENT FAILED How do you handle an offensive realist Despite beliefs, Chinese strategist do not aimed to challenge US anytime soon The 2 countries are increasingly economically interdepend and have the military capability to cause each other harm it’s this mutual vulnerability that carries the best medium-term hope for cooperation In future, best alternative for both is to create a new equilibrium of power that maintains current world system, just giving China more role China will not get ahead if its rivals do not also prosper List of reasons in text Core Us interest - rule of law, regional stability and open economic competition- do not threaten China security US needs to encourage new EQ by drawing clear policy lines that meet its security needs without threatening China's Page 7 US interests in relation to China are uncontroversial and should be affirmed 1. Stable and prosperous China 2. Resolution of the Taiwan issue on terms with Taiwan’s residents are willing to accept 3. freedom of navigation in seas surrounding China 4. Security of Japan and other allies 5. Open world economy 6. protection of human rights TO MAINTAIN THESE INTEREST US NEED TO Maintain its military predominate in Western Pacific, including Each and South China seas US need to push back against Chinese efforts to remake global legal regimes in ways that do not serve interest of the West To maintain China an US need to Sustain the country’s military innovation and renewal nurture relationships with its allows and other cooperating powers continue to support a preeminent higher-education sector protect US intellectual property from espionage and theft...