US-China Relations: Perilous Past, Uncertain Present

by Robert G. Sutter

Overview

This comprehensive and balanced assessment of the historical and contemporary determinants of Sino-American relations explains the conflicted engagement between the two countries. Offering a rich discussion and analysis, Robert G. Sutter explores the twists and turns of the relationship over the past two hundred years.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781538157176
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	01/14/2022
Edition description:	Fourth Edition
Pages:	420
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.93(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Robert G. Sutter was an analyst of Asian and Pacific affairs and American foreign policy for the US government for thirty years. He is now Professor of Practice of International Affairs, Elliott School of International Affairs, George Washington University.

Table of Contents

Chapter One: Introduction

Chapter Two: Patterns of US-China Relations Prior to World War II

Chapter Three: Relations during World War II, Civil War, Cold War

Chapter Four: Rapprochement and Normalization

Chapter Five: Tiananmen, Taiwan, and Post–Cold War Realities, 1989–2000

Chapter Six: Early Twenty-First Century Relations: Pragmatism and Rising Differences

Chapter 7: America’s Negative Turn Against China: Determinants, Evolution, and Implications

Chapter Eight: Security Issues in Contemporary US-China Relations

Chapter Nine: Economic and Environmental Issues in Contemporary US-China Relations

Chapter Ten: Taiwan and East Asian Maritime Disputes in Contemporary US-China Relations

Chapter Eleven: Issues of Human Rights and Governance in Contemporary US-China Relations

Chapter Twelve: Outlook

Notes

Selected Bibliography

Editorial Reviews

For the first time in the history of US-China relations, China is simultaneously approaching power parity with the United States and turning into a strategic competitor. To make sense of the change and continuity in arguably the most important bilateral relationship, veteran China watcher Robert G. Sutter has written a lucid and remarkably insightful account of the history and contemporary development of US-China relations. He adopts a predominantly realist perspective but is eclectic, meticulously tracking the ups and downs while judiciously uncovering the underlying dynamics in interests and values in the bilateral relations. Sutter’s book shows, even if China may not be motivated by a grand strategy, its challenge to the United States is no less serious and protracted.

Yong Deng

Robert G. Sutter’s latest edition of US-China Relations is a very comprehensive, didactic, and balanced analysis of the world’s most important bilateral relationship. It shows in particular that not only the present but also the future of this relationship is uncertain. A great tool for teachers and a must read for all students of China and everyone interested in international affairs.

Jean-Pierre Cabestan

Already the standard text in its field, Sutter’s fourth edition updates his balanced analysis of Sino-American relations to include recent sources of tension

June Teufel Dreyer

The appearance of the fourth edition of Robert G. Sutter’s classic text could not be timelier. A keen analyst of ‘the most important bilateral relationship in the world in the twenty-first century,’ Sutter places the Trump and Biden turns in the relationship in broad historical perspective using clear and precise prose. Highly recommended for undergrads, graduate students, and lay readers.

Lowell Dittmer

Already the standard text in its field, Sutter's fourth edition updates his balanced analysis of Sino-American relations to include recent sources of tension

For the first time in the history of US-China relations, China is simultaneously approaching power parity with the United States and turning into a strategic competitor. To make sense of the change and continuity in arguably the most important bilateral relationship, veteran China watcher Robert G. Sutter has written a lucid and remarkably insightful account of the history and contemporary development of US-China relations. He adopts a predominantly realist perspective but is eclectic, meticulously tracking the ups and downs while judiciously uncovering the underlying dynamics in interests and values in the bilateral relations. Sutter's book shows, even if China may not be motivated by a grand strategy, its challenge to the United States is no less serious and protracted.

Robert G. Sutter's latest edition of US-China Relations is a very comprehensive, didactic, and balanced analysis of the world's most important bilateral relationship. It shows in particular that not only the present but also the future of this relationship is uncertain. A great tool for teachers and a must read for all students of China and everyone interested in international affairs.

The appearance of the fourth edition of Robert G. Sutter's classic text could not be timelier. A keen analyst of 'the most important bilateral relationship in the world in the twenty-first century, ' Sutter places the Trump and Biden turns in the relationship in broad historical perspective using clear and precise prose. Highly recommended for undergrads, graduate students, and lay readers.

From the Publisher

Sutter delves into the storied past of the US-China relationship and offers an insightful perspective on the complexity of the relationship as well as predict its future trajectory. .. . [His] analysis of the relationship is sober and balanced and his observations penetrating and insightful. The book makes a very useful contribution to better understanding this vitally important but difficult relationship through learning from its tumultuous past.

Pacific Affairs

A useful, sweeping account of the world’s most consequential bilateral relationship.

The China Journal

Robert Sutter has produced an excellent introduction to one of the world’s most consequential bilateral relationships.  In a single volume, he provides a concise history of US-China relations from the late eighteenth century to the present, followed by a clear-headed forecast of the future. This new edition offers an updated overview of the major issues in the relationship—from trade, human rights, and Taiwan to climate change and international security. Sutter also adds a consideration of analysis of the maritime disputes in East Asia and the prospects for Sino-American relations in the Trump Administration. Consistently balanced and insightful, this is the text I regularly assign in my courses on the relationship between the United States and China.

Harry Harding

In this latest edition of US-Chinese Relations, Robert Sutter provides a timely analysis of perhaps the most consequential bilateral relationship in international politics. His work is at once informed by a deep understanding of the past and focused on contemporary challenges and opportunities faced by the world’s reigning superpower and its rising counterpart. A balanced and insightful account, this is a must read for policy makers, scholars, and students alike during a crucial period of geostrategic transformation in the Indo-Pacific region.

Jingdong Yuan

Robert Sutter, long recognized as one of the nation's leading analysts and historians of Chinese-American relations, now takes the story through the early months of the Trump administration—to which he does not give high marks for its policies toward East Asia.

Warren Cohen

Over the years, Robert Sutter has been among the most knowledgeable of all American specialists on China. In his ambitious new book, Sutter describes the twists and turns of Sino-American relations over the past two centuries. Sutter shows how American and Chinese policymakers have a strong interest in avoiding public discussion of the conflicts between the two countries and the negative aspects of their relationship; he then proceeds to show, skillfully, just what those conflicts have been and will be. This is a sober account, a perceptive look at where the United States and China have been and where they are headed. (Previous Edition Praise)

James Mann