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The Center for New American Security examines current U.S.-China relations and suggests strategies for future engagement.
China's rise is one of the most significant geopolitical events in modern history, rivaling America's ascent more than a century before. Leading newspapers and blogs from around the world provide a daily reminder of a growing international demand to engage Beijing on a variety of major global issues, including proliferation, energy security, climate change, and the global financial crisis. However, the world is also reminded of the underside of China's ascent, manifested in its support for despotic regimes, its military modernization efforts, and its repressive treatment of its citizens. Still, the international financial crisis that originated in the West has only accelerated China's arrival as a global player. As most of the industrialized world struggles to post neutral growth figures, China maintains that it will achieve eight percent growth in 2009 and continues to find opportunities to convert its economic strength into influence.
In the view of top American officials, the U.S.-China relationship holds the keys to addressing some of the most pressing challenges of the modern epoch. At the Strategic and Economic Dialogue (S&ED) between the two nations this summer, President Obama said the U.S.-China bilateral relationship was "as important as any other bilateral relationship in the world." The United States and China are simply too big to not work together and both sides are prepared for a future of growing interdependency and mutual engagement.
