U.S. – China Relations in Transition: Reading the Tea Leaves with Hans Stockton
This event is free and MASKS ARE REQUIRED at all times while on campus at the John Cooper School. Live-streaming of the event will be available for MEMBERS ONLY.
About the event:
Over 3500 years in the making, China has one of the longest continuous histories of any country in the world. The United States, on the other hand, is still very young with 245 years of recognition as a sovereign. Attempting to accurately characterize the current state of US-China relations can increasingly feel like trying to hit a moving target.
The rise of modern China is anything but a short story, and it is one that requires an understanding of hundreds of years of Chinese history. However, the remarkable rise to power in 2012 of President Xi, and his swift and steady consolidation of power during these past 9 years (spanning 3 US presidential administrations) is critical to understanding the complicated dynamics of America’s relationship with China.
The US-China power struggle will continue to evolve over the next several years and decades. How did we get here, and are we in a new “Cold War” era, as some experts suggest? Or is this just a good old-fashioned hegemonic power struggle? The relationship is dynamically complex and increasingly unstable. However, there are some misperceptions regarding this instability, and there are certain perceived notions of China’s threat to the US which are not entirely accurate. US-China relations expert, Dr. Hans Stockton, will discuss all these points and provide a framework for a better understanding of the current state of US-China dynamics, how we got here and what’s to come.
“When you open the window, the flies will swarm in.”
-Deng Xiaoping
About the speaker: Dr. Hans Stockton – Dean of the Division of Social and Behavioral Sciences & Global Studies | University of St. Thomas
Hans Stockton is Dean of the Division of Social and Behavioral Sciences & Global Studies at the University of St. Thomas in Houston, Texas where he has taught since 2001. He also serves as director of the Taiwan & East Asia Studies Program and holds the Cullen Trust for Higher Education/ Fayez Sarofim Endowed Chair in International Studies. He previously served as director of the university’s Center for International Studies from 2010 – 2020. Professor Stockton holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from Texas A&M University.
His areas of academic specialization are democratization, elections, and security in the contemporary Asia Pacific. He has published articles in journals of political science, economics, public administration, and Asian Studies; authored multiple chapters in edited volumes on military affairs in the Asia Pacific and Taiwan’s political development; and authored or edited three books on development and democratization in East Asia. His most recent book, Taiwan: The Development of a Mini-Dragon (2019), is co-edited with Yao-Yuan Yeh. Professor Stockton is the principle investigator for multiple grant awards from the US Department of Education, Japan Foundation, US-Japan Council, and ministries of Foreign Affairs and Education in Taiwan. Among Dr. Stockton’s greatest academic joys since 2005 has been leading student groups to Taiwan.
Professor Stockton is a Center Associate of the Election Studies Center at National Cheng Chi University in Taipei, Taiwan. He has served as president of the American Association of Chinese Studies (2015, 2016), coordinator of the Conference Group on Taiwan Studies (2012 – 2014), and multiple terms as president of the Southwest Conference on Asian Studies. He has served or serves on the board of directors of the Houston-Taipei Society, Japan America Society, American Association of Chinese Studies, and Asian Pacific American Heritage Association. He serves on the editorial boards for Asian Survey and the Korea Journal.
Dr. Stockton has been interviewed by and/or published editorials on matters related to US-China-Taiwan relations and political affairs in China, Taiwan, and Korea in the Associated Press, National Public Radio, Voice of America Asia, Washington Observer Weekly, Taipei Times, Taiwan Journal, e-International Relations, and Houston Chronicle. He has provided political commentary for ABC, NBC, Fox, and CBS local news in Houston, KUHT, the Foreign Policy Research Institute, Radio Taiwan International, NTD TV, Southern Daily News, and the World Journal.