HIST1551 - History of US-China Relations

The list of issues shaping the US-China relationship is extensive. Trade and investment, the status and future of Taiwan, China’s expansion into the South China Sea and its relationships with East and Southeast Asian neighbors, the Belt and Road Initiative and China’s expanding influence in the United Nations and other multilateral institutions, human rights, the status of Hong Kong, concerns about Xinjiang, technology transfer, intellectual property and cyberespionage, the status of people-to-people engagement in fields like education, health and cultural exchange and many others are all ongoing points of discussion between the two great powers. Understanding these issues in the present day requires exploring how these issues evolved over the decades and even centuries of engagement between the United States and China. Are there similarities between America’s Open-Door policy of the late 19th century and its position on trade with China today? What are the prospects for Taiwan policy given the complicated diplomatic history surrounding the recognition of the People’s Republic in the 1970s? When and why did human rights come to be a defining issue in the US-China relationship and how has it evolved over time? How have people-to-people exchanges been understood to undergird the relationship? How are 21st c. flashpoints, such as technology competition and cyberespionage, impacting the traditional list of tensions, such as Taiwan, maritime conflicts, and geopolitics in East Asia? What are the consistent through lines in America’s policies toward China and what has changed?
This course will look at a series of issues that are at the center of the US-China relationship through an historical lens, providing students with insight into the forces that have shaped positions on both sides. Students will develop an understanding of key issues in the diplomatic relationship the United States and China today and their deep historical roots. No previous study of Chinese history is required for this course, but students will be expected to engage enthusiastically with the course material.