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Overview
The title of this unique insider's look at a crucial decade of Sino-American interchange derives from a Chinese expression that describes a relationship of two people whose lives are intimately intertwined but who do not fundamentally communicate with each other. David M. Lampton, former president of the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations, demonstrates that while the United States and China have enormous interests at stake in their bilateral relationship, neither has been particularly deft in dealing with the other. His fascinating account shows how the processes of globalization, along with the development of international regimes and multilateral organizations, have brought America and China increasingly close in the global bed. At the same time, their respective national institutions, interests, popular perceptions, and the very characters of their two peoples, assure that the nations continue to have substantially different dreams.
Lampton explores the reasons why the Sino-American relationship is so difficult for both nations to manage and suggests ways it can be more effectively conducted in the future. His unique experience in China—nearly thirty years as a scholar, as the head of a policy-oriented exchange organization, and as director of Washington think-tank research programs—enabled him to spend extended periods with Chinese leaders and see them as they encountered America, as well as to observe U.S. leaders as they tried to come to grips with Chinese circumstances. Among many other key events, Lampton witnessed firsthand the aftermath of Tiananmen Square, successive congressional battles over most-favored-nation tariff treatment, the end of the Bush era and the rocky beginning of the Clinton administration, the death of Deng Xiaoping and Jiang Zemin's transition to power, the reversion of Hong Kong to Chinese sovereignty, and the Asian financial crisis that unfolded from mid-1997 to the end of the decade.
Lampton's careful documentary research is supplemented by interviews and accounts of his personal interaction throughout the period with leaders and key players in Washington, Beijing, Taipei, and Hong Kong. The book thus represents a singular combination of historical research, policy analysis, and personal observation, and offers guidance for those in both America and China who must shape this critical relationship in the twenty-first century.
Synopsis
"David M. Lampton has written an extraordinary book. Systematic and comprehensive, highly original and interpretive, it captures the complexity of Sino-American relations as no other book has done."—Michel Oksenberg, coauthor of Policy Making in China: Leaders, Structures, and Processes
"Lampton paints a comprehensive and compelling picture of the up-and -down relationship between the U.S. and the PRC during the last fifty years. He offers clear insights into the underlying causes of the sometimes dangerous problems experienced in the past. He also offers sound prescriptions for how to make the relationship more constructive in the future. This book is a must-read for senior officials in the next administration."—William Perry, former United States Secretary of Defense and currently Professor at Stanford University
"David Lampton brilliantly describes the complex interplay of conditions, constraints, and personalities that have shaped the Sino-American relationship since the end of the Cold War. His keen eye, careful scholarship, and broad access to top leaders over three decades are apparent from his colorful quotations that open each chapter to his astute conclusions. His fresh, balanced, and insightful analysis is a 'must read' for those who aspire to understand and better manage a relationship that is key to peace and prosperity in the twenty-first century. Happily, this seminal work is as readable as it is scholarly."—Carla A. Hills, former United States Trade Representative and currently Chairman and CEO of Hills & Company
Times Literary Supplement
An exceptionally important book on the relationship between these two great powers. Having participated in meetings with many Chinese leaders and policy analysts during the decade he spent as President of the National Committee on United States-China Relations, he provides unusual insight into Chinese perspectives and into the internal and external influences on their decisions. No one has done a better job of explaining the relationship between the Chinese political system and China's foreign policy.