Greater China and U.S. Foreign Policy: The Choice Between Confrontation and Mutual Respect

by Thomas Metzger (Editor), Ramon H. Myers (Editor)

A group of internationally prominent China scholars held a conference at the Hoover Institution in December 1994 to discuss how U.S. policy can best respond to recent changes in China and made clear that a "get-tough" policy would ultimately fail. This volume presents, in ten authoritative chapters, the first comprehensive overview of this complex topic—along with sound reasoning to support its provocative conclusion. The end of the cold war left the United States as the world's only superpower, but greater China was already in the throes of major change. As a post-Mao People's Republic gradually shifted from totalitarianism to a "socialist market economy," Taiwan underwent an "economic micracle" and then democratized. Hostilities between these two governments subsided, but America remained faced with Beijing's continuing authoritarianism and human rights abuses. In light of these circumstances, what posture should U.S. foreign policy adopt in dealing with China: confrontation or cooperation? Indeed, is such a clear-cut choice possible? Thomas A. Metzger and Ramon H. Myers assembled the participants, weaving an overview of this whole problem and concluding that the United States should try to nurture harmonious relations with China. The papers included here analyze the recent evolution of Chinese foreign policy toward Taiwan, Taiwan's development and policy on unification, security and economic issues, and the diplomatic visions that will affect the future of greater China. As a whole, this book coherently formulates the principles that should guide U. S. policy toward greater China in the next decades.

124 pages, Paperback

First published May 28, 1996