When examining the priorities of the top leaders in both the United States and China, there is one area of stark common ground: middle-class development. In a recent article about the state of U.S.-China relations, Cheng Li asserts, "A shared imperative for middle class development can bring unconventional thinking to help thaw an icy bilateral relationship."
Ryan Hass discusses the history of "common prosperity" and the series of recent crackdowns launched by the Chinese authorities on technology giants, wealthy individuals, education services providers, celebrities, and even youth video gamers.
Mireya Solís explains why China's request to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) trade agreement is a masterful stroke for Chinese diplomacy, even if the intended outcome of membership is far from assured.
Patricia M. Kim is a David M. Rubenstein fellow in the John L. Thornton China Center and the Center for East Asia Policy Studies. She is an expert on Chinese foreign policy, U.S.-China relations, and U.S. alliance management and regional security dynamics in East Asia. Previously, Kim served as a China specialist at the U.S. Institute of Peace, a Stanton Nuclear Security fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, International Security Program research fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government's Belfer Center, and postdoctoral fellow at Princeton University’s Princeton-Harvard China and the World program. She holds a Ph.D. from Princeton University and a B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley.
Shuxian Luo is a postdoctoral research fellow in the John L. Thornton China Center. Her research interests include Chinese foreign policy with a focus on crisis behavior and decision-making, maritime security, U.S.-Asia relations, and Asia-Arctic policy. Luo is completing a book manuscript, which provides an analytical framework to explain when, why, and how China escalates or deescalates incidents at sea arising from its maritime territorial and boundary disputes. She holds a Ph.D. and M.A. from Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), an M.A. from Columbia University, and a B.A. from Peking University. Before embarking on her doctoral studies, Luo worked as a journalist in Los Angeles.
China's digital natives. Cheng Li published an article in the South China Morning Post that draws from his introductory chapter in "China's Youth" and highlights a key aspect of Chinese younger generations who have grown up amid the digital revolution.
Takeaways from the U.N. General Assembly. The Washington Post interviewed Ryan Hass regarding the U.S. and Chinese presidential remarks at the U.N. General Assembly. "Both leaders are seeking to establish themselves as working responsibly to manage U.S.-China relations and implicitly suggesting that if there is a further breakdown in relations, it is the other side’s fault," said Hass.
China's real estate sector. Newsweek spoke with David Dollar about the significance of the housing sector in China in the context of the Evergrande Group's debt crisis.
The state of Sino-Canadian relations.Diana Fu spoke with The Globe and Mail about Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's approach to China and the state of bilateral relations after the detention of Michael Spavor. "Any hope for a quiet, behind-the-doors negotiation has been long dashed, so I would imagine the desire to have better relations with China is now tempered by the frosty reality," said Fu.
About the China Center
The John L. Thornton China Centerdevelops timely, independent analysis and policy recommendations to help U.S. and Chinese leaders address key long-term challenges, both in terms of U.S.-China relations and China's internal development.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Brookings Institution campus in Washington, D.C. is currently closed and all events are virtual only. For more information on the Institution's response, read our full guidance here.
The Brookings Institution, 1775 Massachusetts Ave NW, Washington, DC 20036
