A cool appraisal of China's place in the world, which discounts the
more fevered expectations of Chinese aggression. Nathan (Political
Science/Columbia Univ.) and Ross (Political Science/Boston Coll.),
while noting that China can be very aggressive (it has engaged in
conflicts with the US, Russia, Japan, India, Vietnam, South Korea,
and Taiwan in this century), believe that it is vulnerable and
aware of its vulnerability. Its weaknesses are both military - "by
far the weakest of the four great powers in Asia" - and economic,
with an economic strategy "that will succeed only through
intensified integration into the world economy." China has, in
effect, found itself having to catch a ride on the Asian tigers,
with all the usual dangers attached to such transportation. Prior
to the Nixon visit to Beijing in 1972, Chinese policymakers
reckoned that the economy had to grow 6 to 10 percent a year to
improve living standards enough to prevent economic and social
breakdown. This has meant that China, potentially one of the most
self-sufficient countries in the world, has become increasingly
dependent not just on world trade but on the attitude of
institutions like the IMF and the World Bank. This has led to
immense improvements in the nation's living standards but has come
at the cost of opening up the country to the very kinds of social
and cultural forces that topple repressive regimes. Despite the
substantial differences between the US and China - the trade
deficit, human rights, Taiwan - Nathan and Ross conclude that the
fundamental interests of the two countries "pull them together more
than they drive them apart." A thoughtful, dispassionate, and
persuasive look at a great power during a time of great challenge
and change. (Kirkus Reviews)
In June 1997 Britain's imperial presence in the Far East will come
to an end when Hong Kong reverts to China. China's relations with
the West, already strained by differences over human rights, trade
policy and arms control issues, will be put to the test. This book
examines China's foreign policy, exploring her motives and her
search for national security. The authors of this study expect the
outcome of this change to depend as much upon the West as on China.
They argue that Western leaders are blind to a consistent pattern
in China's foreign relations: the pursuit of national interest.
Crowded on all sides by powerful rivals and potential foes, China's
most pressing security problems are at and within its borders.
Nathan and Ross examine China's foreign policy as a search for
security with motives similar to those of other states. They assert
that to understand what motivates Chinese foreign policy is not to
counsel concessions to their demands. Instead, they advise that
this understanding should help Western policy makers accommodate
China when they should, persuade China when they can, and resist
China when they must.
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