Bush' s China Policy and the Future of Sino-U.S.Relations

The past two years have witnessed great fluctuations ininternational oil prices,and diplomatic efforts,both above andunder the table,by major powers around this issue.The currenttension in the war-threatened Iraq has added more uncertainties to thefuture world oil situation.Will the world oil supply and demand change?What impact would this exert on big powers’ oil strategy choices,geopolitics as well as world economy?What should China do in such asituation?To find the answers to these questions,at the invitation of theeditor of the Contemporary International Relations,seven experts fromChina Institute of Contemporary International Relations gathered to have adiscussion in early February this year.Naturally,they have differentviews over many issues.Still,we hope our readers would find theirdiscussion interesting.Following is the list of participants.

SINO-U.S.RELATIONS:AT A NEW CROSSROADS?

In recent months,Sino-American relations have been experiencing sort of an-other round of tensions,which have raised new concerns from both sides,al-though the optimism and hope for further development built up after a major break-through last summer still persist,especially at working levels.For those who knowthe history of Sino-American relations through the last two decades,the

An Analysis of Cyberspace Rule-Making in China-U.S. Relations

As an established power and a rising power respectively, the U.S. and China have profound impacts on the development of cyberspace. The foundation of cyberspace governance is to constrain the behavior of every international actor with effective norms. Therefore, cyberspace rule-making has an important implication in China-U.S. relations and it is necessary for both sides to formulate cyberspace norms under mutually acceptable concepts. Besides, the ideas of＂a new type of major power relations＂ and ＂a community with a shared future for mankind＂ provide theoretical foundation for cyberspace rule-making. In the short term, the establishment of norms can be promoted by negotiating limited issues, which could be called a low-level path. In the long run, they will reach informal mechanism which can be called a middle-level path, as well as formal mechanism of mutual recognition which can be seen as a high-level path, promoting the enforcement of cyberspace norms. Besides, ＂Track Two Diplomacy＂ and ＂Track 1.5 Diplomacy＂ also benefit the process of cyberspace rule-making negotiations.

New Sino-US Strategic Gambling and China’s Strategy

Since confidence is fading and anxiety is increasing in the US,America’s China policy has become more radical. In the short term, the US has the upper hand and China is in a relatively passive position. In the medium-and long-term, there will be more balance between them. This current strategic gambling between China and the US will be the major issue of international politics in the first half of the 21 st century and the most prominent external challenge China faces. China needs to make strategic adjustments but the gamble may be worthwhile in correcting imbalance in the international order and in the co-evolution of the two countries.

Public-Private Partnerships to Address Global Environmental Problem： Sino-US Cooperation on Climate Change and Energy

The study indicates that public-private partnerships （PPPs） can play ＂strategic＂, ＂practical＂, or ＂regulative＂ roles by making use of ＂instrumental＂, ＂institutional＂, and ＂normative＂ approaches in tackling political issues between countries. PPPs have often been discussed in studies of urban development, service provision, health care, and so on, but they have rarely been analyzed in terms of international relations and political problems on global environmental issues. This study takes an environmental problena---Sino-US energy and climate change cooperation--as a case study to inspect the possible roles and approaches of PPPs. Sino-US cooperation has been launched such as under the Strategic ＆ Economic Dialogue （S＆ED） by both administrations, which has significantly contributed to their reconciliation of domestic abatement policies in climate change, environmental protection, and energy. The establishment of schemes such as the Ten-Year Framework for Cooperation on Energy and Environment （TYF）, the EcoPartnerships, and wide-ranging dialogues and initiatives on clean energy and clean vehicles, in which both public and private actors participate, are among the important approaches of facilitating bilateral cooperation. The study concludes that these schemes have played strategic and practical roles in strengthening the degree of mutual trust and in facilitating the progress of cooperation, although more investigations are needed to considerate their regulative roles. The application of instrumental, institutional, and normative approaches have been observed through the implementation of the TYF and EcoPartnerships.

Stop Toying Around With Sino-U.S. Relations

Since early March this year,the outcry concerning the quality of Chinese export commodities, from cosmetics to foodstuffs to toys, has been deafening,particularly from certain congressmen, presidential candidates and themedia in the United States. Tom Plate,a professor at UCLA, and Mei Xinyu,a research fellow with the Research Academy under the Chinese Ministry of Commerce,however,point out that an ineffective U.S.quality inspection system must shoulder some of the responsibility for the current safety scare.

The New Face of Sino-U.S. Relations

Barack Obama’s policy of change bodes well for Beijing since President Barack ObamaI assumed office on January 20,Sino-U.S. relations have gotten off to a good start:More high-level exchanges, closer economic

China and the United States’ Critical Roles in Tackling Climate Change and Shaping the International Regimes

This paper argues that major powers can play critical roles in a complicated regime system,as evidenced by China and the U.S.which have had pivotal influence in the construction of the post-2020 climate regime.China and the U.S.have participated in multilateral consultations beyond the scope of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change(UNFCCC)while making use of many political platforms,such as Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation(APEC),G20,and informal meetings and dialogues to bridge the gap among various approaches to mitigating climate impacts.China-U.S.bilateral cooperation has incorporated energy and climate issues into the strategic and economic dialogue(S&ED)and launched other schemes,such as EcoPartnerships and wide-ranging dialogues and initiatives on clean energy/clean vehicles.These schemes support the reconciliation of ideas related to domestic abatement policies in the areas of energy,climate change,and environmental protection.Since the Trump administration came to power in 2017,the bilateral cooperation at national level has been retreated significantly and therefore slowdown the UN’s institutional response to climate change.At the stage,the U.S.may not be able to play a critical role in shaping the regime,yet China is regarded to be the most important player in negotiations under the Paris Agreement.

The“China Energy Threat”Thesis and Sino-U.S.Relations:A Critical Review

As the global energy market undergoes profound changes,the world oil price fluctuates at a high level,and also China’s dependence on energy imports is on the rise.Some American strategists and analysts are keen on creating and disseminating the“China Energy Threat,”an illusion that is now somewhat exaggerated and overrated.On the contrary,there are reasons to believe that it is America that is the most powerful influencer and actor on international energy security and America is well advised to examine its own policy and behavior.The“China Energy Threat”thesis has cast some shadow over the steady development of Sino-U.S.relations,giving rise to mutual suspicion,mistrust and misunderstanding.The Strategic Economic Dialogue(SED)between China and U.S.alone is not enough.Both countries should demonstrate their political wisdom,create new mechanisms,make concessions,transcend oil and build up mutual trust.These should be identified as the policy foci and chief objectives of China and U.S.both at present and in the future.

美债问题对中美关系的影响

近年来,美国国债问题日益引起国际社会的瞩目。奥巴马政府采取了削减预算赤字等措施来缓解国债剧增的压力。积重难返的美债问题给中国等债权国的资产安全带来隐忧;而中国作为美国最大债权国,同样造成了美国国家安全的担忧。由于中美债务关系的非对称性,美国的行动能力并未受到影响。美债问题还间接加剧了中美贸易摩擦及人民币汇率问题的争议。中美债务关系的相互依赖还将长期持续,并将对中美关系产生深远影响。