About this episode

Jessica Chen Weiss discusses China's ambitions and the implications for U.S. foreign policy.

There has been no shortage of dizzying shifts in American foreign policy since Donald Trump returned to the White House last year. But perhaps none have been as surprising as the shift on China. In his first term, Trump helped create a hard-line consensus centered on fears of a growing threat. Now, he seems much more interested in striking deals—as he presumably will be when Xi Jinping comes to Washington later this month. Many analysts of U.S. China policy have reacted to this reversal with dismay. But Jessica Chen Weiss sees it as an opportunity to forge a more sensible approach. Weiss, a professor and the faculty director of the Institute for America, China, and the Future of Global Affairs at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and a former State Department official, has warned of the dangers of zero-sum thinking about China in a series of essays for Foreign Affairs. Her most recent essay, in the September/October issue, focuses on the myth and the reality of China’s critical mineral dominance. Dan Kurtz-Phelan spoke to Weiss on August 31 about what China wants—which is also the title of her forthcoming book—and what U.S. foreign policy can do to meet those…

People in this episode

Host: Dan Kurtz-Phelan

Guest: Jessica Chen Weiss

Topics covered

• U.S. foreign policy
• China relations
• international diplomacy
• critical minerals
• zero-sum thinking

Keywords

• China
• U.S. foreign policy
• Jessica Chen Weiss
• critical minerals
• diplomacy
• Trump
• Xi Jinping

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, Foreign Affairs

Books & works: What Does China Want?, September/October issue, China’s critical mineral dominance

Places: China, Washington

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