Winter Quarter, 2020
Tuesdays, 9:30-11:30 a.m., Norris University Center
Uneasy Partners: US-China Relations, 1900-2019
William Hurst, Professor, Political Science
The United States and China are arguably the two most powerful and important countries in the world today. Their bilateral relationship is clearly among the most important between any two states. Yet, comparatively little attention is paid by the media, and even some policy actors, to the underlying dynamics and historical trends in this relationship. This course aims to introduce students to the basic dynamics of strategic thinking and policy-making on both sides, to give an overview of the history of US-China relations, and to discuss a number of key contemporary issues in the relationship in some detail. It also aims to introduce a conceptual and theoretical template for making sense of the complex dynamics of the world’s most important bilateral relationship.