The Great Wall and the Empty Fortress: China's Search for Security

by Andrew J. Nathan, Robert S. Ross

Many see China and the United States on the path to confrontation. The Chinese leadership violates human rights norms. It maintains a harsh rule in Tibet, spars aggressively with Taiwan, and is clamping down on Hong Kong. A rising power with enormous assets, China increasingly considers American interests an obstacle to its own.


But, the authors argue, the United States is the least of China's problems. Despite its sheer size, economic vitality, and drive to upgrade its military forces, China remains a vulnerable power, crowded on all sides by powerful rivals and potential foes. As it has throughout its history, China faces immense security challenges, and their sources are at and within China's own borders. China's foreign policy is calibrated to defend its territorial integrity against antagonists who are numerous, near, and strong.


The authors trace the implications of this central point for China's relations with the United States and the rest of the world.

Genres: China, Nonfiction, History, Politics

289 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1997

About the author

Andrew J. Nathan is Class of 1919 Professor of Political Science at Columbia University. His teaching and research interests include Chinese politics and foreign policy, the comparative study of political participation and political culture, and human rights. He is engaged in long-term research and writing on Chinese foreign policy and on sources of political legitimacy in Asia, the latter research based on data from the Asian Barometer Survey, a multi-national collaborative survey research project active in eighteen countries in Asia.

Born on April 3, 1943, in New York City, Professor Nathan received his degrees from Harvard University: the B.A. in History, summa cum laude, in 1963; the M.A. in East Asian Regional Studies in 1965; and the Ph.D. in Political Science in 1971. He taught at the University of Michigan in 1970-71 and has been at Columbia University since 1971.

Reviews

[Joseph · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although the book is somewhat dated, I still enjoyed it immensely. The author makes the argument that China must adapt its policies to survive in the coming decades. From human rights to copyright issues, the author details the struggles China is facing going into the 21st century. One thing about this book that kind of bothered me was that the printing quality was so-so. The text was still readable, but several pages had letters missing. Other than that it was a great book.

[Brian Kirk · Rating 4 out of 5]

The content of this book, while dated still has some relevency in todays world. China is one of the emerging countries in the world. I found the information helpful in understanding China's perspective and views. I would be interested in seeing an update version of the book by the authors. This book took place before Hong Kong and Macau were both re-unified with the mainland. It also touched on the Taiwan situation and history.

[Jack · Rating 4 out of 5]

a fairly well done overview of china's relations with neighbors, allies, and enemies. no groudbreaking thesis here, but does give a solid description of the motivations behind china's diplomacy and foreign engagement. ends with what is essentially an advocacy for the status quo in most of the contentious issues at hand.

[Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book is amazing when read as a story, which is really what it is. unfortunately, most people who encounter this book, read it in a scientific environment. that kind of tainted my enjoyment of it.

[Pieter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Concise but rather complete history of China's foreign policy and its current challenges. The book covers both the relationship with its neighbouring countries (Taiwan, Vietnam, Thailand,...) as with global players like Russia, USA and Japan.

[Nate Huston · Rating 3 out of 5]

Defensive realist interpretation of China. A bit soft...are they on the Chinese payroll? Overall, though, a great example of application to the real world.