The Influence of Christian Nationalism on U.S.Foreign Policy

This paper explores the influence of Christian nationalism on U.S.foreign policy,examining its historical roots,ideological foundations,and contemporary implications.Christian nationalism,an ideology that links Christianity with national identity,has shaped U.S.foreign policy in areas such as religious freedom,Middle East diplomacy,and national security.Through its emphasis on the moral duty to defend Christianity and its promotion of conservative social values,Christian nationalism has affected U.S.relations with countries around the world,particularly in the Middle East and with religious minorities.The paper discusses the complexities and controversies surrounding Christian nationalism,its impact on the U.S.’s global image,and the challenges it poses to religious pluralism.The future of Christian nationalism’s influence on U.S.foreign policy is uncertain,as societal shifts and evolving global dynamics may prompt a reevaluation of its role in shaping America’s international actions.Overall,the paper provides a nuanced analysis of how Christian nationalism has intertwined with U.S.foreign policy and how its influence might evolve in the future.

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.

China’s alfalfa market and imports: Development, trends, and potential impacts of the U.S.-China trade dispute and retaliations

This study examines the development and trends of China’s alfalfa market and imports, identifies key factors for the rapid increase in China’s alfalfa imports, and discusses potential impacts of the U.S.-China trade dispute and retaliations on the alfalfa markets and trade in both nations. China’s rapid transition toward larger-scale commercial dairy production, with enhanced feed and cost management as well as quality and safety control, and its limited resources for high-quality alfalfa production are key factors for the dramatic increase in its alfalfa imports, from 19 601 metric tons in 2008 to 1.38 million metric tons(mmt) in 2018. While the United States dominated China’s alfalfa imports with an average share of 97.01% from 2007 to 2017, the share dropped to 83.76% in 2018 and 63.28% in January 2019 due to the trade dispute and retaliations started in 2018. China will likely remain a large importer of alfalfa because of both its growing demand and the comparative advantages of imported alfalfa in quality and price, but the imports from the United States will be highly affected by the ongoing trade dispute and negotiations. China is also expected to make more efforts to reduce its dependence on U.S. alfalfa through increased investment in domestic alfalfa production and identification of alternative sources of alfalfa and other hay imports.

Redefining a U.S.Strategy toward China:Smart Policy and its Implications

The redefinition of the U.S.policy toward China since Barack Obama’s election has been based on a compromise between elements of hard power(military,economy) and soft power(influence,dialogue,persuasion).This new posture has been defined by several experts and policymakers as a"smart policy".However,considering the rise of China and its implications both at economic and political levels,what is the real margin of Washington in its relation with Beijing,and what are the long term implications of the smart policy? If the China policy is a priority for the Obama administration,the challenges for Washington are particularly sensitive, considering the consequences of a failure in implementing comprehensive China-U.S.relations.

Counteraction to China?Impact of the U.S.International Development Finance Corporation on China’s Development Finance

The United States passed the Better Utilization of Investment Leading to Development(BUILD Act),as a counterweight to China’s overseas development activities.Under the Act,the US established a new federal agency,the U.S.International Development Finance Corporation(DFC),to enhance U.S.development financing capabilities.To better understand the impact of the DFC on China’s development finance,this article analyzes the DFC’s purpose,functions,structure,and funding.Then it focuses on the purpose of establishing the DFC,providing a preliminary analysis of the potential motivation for its establishment.It also compares the China Development Bank(CDB)and the DFC based on their focused sectors.Finally,through an in-depth analysis of financial frictions in China-U.S.relations,this article argues that the DFC competes with China’s overseas development financing activities in the context of broader strategic competition between China and the U.S.

Comparison of Corn Production Costs in China,the U.S. and Brazil and Its Implications

This paper analyzes the corn production cost in China, the U.S. and Brazil from 1997 to 2014. According to the results,（1） corn production cost in China is the highest among these three countries;（2） the rapid growth of labor cost and land cost is the major factor that promotes the increase of total corn production cost in China;（3） the level of agricultural mechanization in China has been gradually improving, and the gap between agricultural mechanization levels in China and other two countries is constantly narrowing;（4） differing from the U.S. and Brazil,China exhibits a ＂high input, low output＂ agricultural production mode. Based on the above analyses, corresponding suggestions have been presented to reduce corn production cost in China.

Assessment of China's International Environment and U.S. Strategic Trend

It is of great significance to have a clear understanding of the international environment that China faces. But this is an uneasy job. Since September 11, the world situation has become so complicated that it is hard to grasp its essence even with painstaking efforts. To judge such an already complicated international environment from China’s perspective adds more difficulties, for different people usually have different views due to the different angles from which they see the situation and different methods they adopt. This, understandably, leads to hot debates within the Chinese academic circles. To provide a stage for exchange of views, at the invitation of the CIR Expert Forum, some well-known scholars and experts on international relations from Beijing gathered to hold a symposium on November 5, 2002, with the theme of "How to assess the international environment that China faces". The speeches at the symposium will be published in two installments. Following are the first half.

U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Agreement: Reasons, impacts, and China's response

Applying qualitative and quantitative methods, this article explains the driving forces behind U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw from the Paris Agreement, assesses the impacts of this withdrawal on the compliance prospects of the agreement, and proposes how China should respond. The withdrawal undercuts the foundation of global climate governance and upsets the process of climate cooperation, and the impacts are manifold. The withdrawal undermines the universality of the Paris Agreement and impairs states' confidence in climate cooperation; it aggravates the leadership deficit in addressing global climate issues and sets a bad precedent for international climate cooperation. The withdrawal reduces other countries' emission space and raises their emission costs, and refusal to contribute to climate aid makes it more difficult for developing countries to mitigate and adapt to climate change. Cutting climate research funding will compromise the quality of future IPCC reports and ultimately undermine the scientific authority of future climate negotiations. China faces mounting pressure from the international community to assume global climate leadership after the U.S. withdraws, and this article proposes that China should reach the high ends of its domestic climate targets under the current Nationally Determined Contributions; internationally, China should facilitate the rebuilding of shared climate leadership, replacing the G2 with C5. Meanwhile, China needs to keep the U.S. engaged in climate cooperation.

Enlightenment of Cultural Innovation in the Park of China from the Park Development of U.S.A. and Singapore

This text combines authors＇ visits and examinations on the spot of Silicon Valley of U.S.A. and Park of Singapore, after analyzing the Park development experience of U.S.A. and Singapore, elucidates ＂three culture effects＂ of Park development in terms of cultural system emphatically, then proposes some suggestions of cultural innovation in the Park of China.

China catches up with the U.S. as the world's largest manufacturer

This paper compares the internal structures of the manufacturing industries in China and the U.S. from 1998 to 2005 and leads to three major discoveries: First, the gaps between China and the U.S.'s manufacturing capacity have been narrowing at a high speed in the last seven years, during which the share of added value of China's manufacturing industry to that of the U.S. increased from 13% to 52%, and then reached 76% in 2007. Second, the labor force employed in China's manufacturing industry increased by 50%, of which the increase in capital and technology-intensive production sectors exceeded that in labor-intensive sectors. Meanwhile, the labor force employed in the U.S. manufacturing industry decreased. Third, labor productivity in China's manufacturing industry increased by 2.78 times, and profits increased by 2.21 times, much higher than the U.S. growth rates of 18.2% and 49.5%. Obviously, the narrowing gaps between China and the U.S.'s production capacities mean China's industrial progress and the hierarchy of world industrial powers will be rearranged.

EU vs. U.S. , Russia and China

Since George W. Bush assumed the presidency in early 2001, a tense situation had occurred in the relationships among world big powers. In the aftermath of September 11,significant improvement has been made in Sino-U.S. and Russia-U. S. relations. In the meantime, corresponding changes have taken place in EU-U. S.and Russia-China relations.

Readjustment in U.S. Foreign Policy

At the dawn of the new century, the Republicans returned to the White House after eight years in opposition. When President George W. Bush and his foreign policy team were striving to realize their diplomatic ambition, the events of September 11 led them to readjust their foreign policy, thereby a remarkable feature can be seen in Mr. Bush’s initial diplomacy.

The Third U.S.-China Strategic Economic Dialogue

At Grand Epoch City near Beijing on December 12 and 13, the United States and China held the third Strategic Economic Dialogue (SED).As special representatives of President George W. Bush and President Hu Jintao,Treasury Secretary Henry M. Pauslon,Jr. and Vice Premier Wu Yi served as cochairs of the SED.……

How “Made-in-China” Boosts U.S.Employment-An Empirical Analysis of “U.S.Content” in China’s Exports of Manufactured Goods

This paper aims to examine the specific ways in which China＇s exports of manufactured goods to the United States boost the U.S. job market. Using the OECD STAN Bilateral Trade Database by Industry and End-use Category to calculate the share of U.S. intermediate products used in the manufactured goods China exports to the U.S., this paper finds that the ＂U.S. content＂ in China＇s exports of manufactured goods to the U.S. increases with the technology content of the goods and shows a decreasing trend over time. From 2006 to 2010, the average ＂US. content＂ in China＇s exports of manufactured goods to the U.S. was 1%, and such content in China＇s exports of high-end manufactured goods was 1.6%. On this basis and using the employment-output ratio in the U.S. Employment Demand Matrix, this paper concludes that as many as 1.71 million jobs have been created by the U.S. intermediate products used in China＇s exports of manufactured goods to the U.S. during the same period. Thus, the development of Sino-U.S. trade has a positive impact on the job market in the U.S.. By contrast, instead of improving the employment situation in the U.S., the RMB appreciation proposed by the U.S. might even have a negative effect.

Health Technology and U.S. Medicare Policy in the Late 20th Century

Much of the history of the American Social Welfare movement has been directed to the identification and development of entitlement programs needed to strengthen the health and economy of even the neediest members of the society. The emergence of health technologies have precipitated and supported policy advances. The Medicare Act （Title XVIII the United States Social Security Act of 1935） as such an entitlement program, was originally directed to resolving the health coverage concerns of the elderly without families or finances to afford coverage. The program entered crises periods over rising costs and continuity of funding concerns. Many have been assisted, in the U.S., in addition to the aged population, by the development of Medicare entitlements. These entitlements have emerged during periods of social need often accompanied by health technology or service delivery innovation. The program benefits more than its constituents and contributes to the health of the overall society. This paper will provide both a historical overview of the conflicts and uncertainties weathered by the Medicare Act in the later quarter of the 20th Century in the U.S. （United States of America）. The paper will also explore the implications of changes in the technology of federal and state funding mechanisms along with demographic changes that offered the greatest challenges to the continuation of the Medicare Act as a mainstay of stable health coverage to millions of needy Americans, into the 21st century.

Lessons from the coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19)pandemic response in China,Italy,and the U.S.:a guide for Africa and low-and middle-income countries

Africa can be"left behind"after other advanced continents recover from the coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19)pandemic as reflected by the global pandemic of HIV/MDS.In this paper,we summarize potentially adaptable,effective and innovative strategies from China,Italy,and the U.S.The purpose is to help African countries with weaker healthcare systems better respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.China,being the first to report COVID-19 infection swiftly swung into anti-epidemic actions by the use of innovative risk communication and epidemic containment strategies.Italy and U.S.,the next rapidly hit countries after China,however,experienced sustained infections and deaths due to delayed and ineffective response.Many African countries responded poorly to the COVID-19 pandemic as evidenced by the limited capacity for public health surveillance,poor leadership,low education and socioeconomic status,among others.Experience from China,Italy and U.S.suggests that a better response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Mrica needs a strong public health leadership,proactive strategies,innovative risk communication about the pandemic,massive tests and isolation,and scaling-up community engagement.Lastly,African countries must collaborate with other countries to facilitate real-time information and experience exchange with other countries to avoid being left behind.

Accreditation System of Distance Higher Education in the U.S. and Its Implications for China

Distance higher education is an important component of the Chinese higher education.How to enhance the quality of distance higher education is one of the key issues to be addressed in the research areas of distance education and higher education.As a crucial step to quality improvement,the constitution of accreditation system in distance higher education balances the benefits of all parties involved.This paper explores the American accreditation system of higher education and distance education and concludes with suggestions for the constitution of the Chinese quality assurance system:1)establishing third-party institutions to share part of the government roles;2)constituting the accreditation system;3)setting up appropriate standards;4)publicizing results of quality assurance work;and 5)building internal quality assurance mechanism.This paper is aimed to provide some reference to the constitution of accreditation system of distance higher education in China,facilitate the solution of quality problems in distance education,and promote the continuous improvement and development of distance education in China.