The Political Logic of the USChina Trade War

(Hardback)

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This is the first comprehensive study by the worlds leading scholars about the political logic of the U.S.-China trade war that started during the Trump administration. The book is divided into three parts. The first part looks at changed leadership styles of the two countries in the last few years. It also examines the liberal international order since World War II in which the trade war emerged. It then explores the theoretical perspectives from both the United States and China that are related to the trade war. The second part is about the domestic factors that impacted on the trade war from Chinas perspective. These factors include Chinas institutional adaptation of the new international environment, the radicalization of the Chinese political discourse, and Big Power Diplomacy. The third part explores the U.S. domestic factors that impacted the trade war, such as the Trump administrations different China policy in general, the role played by the U.S. Congress, business lobby, and the transition of foreign policy from a Wilsonian World Order to Jacksonian Nationalism.

Reviews

The US-China trade war seems to have erupted without warning, only to be paused with a temporary deal, but it has endured even after the Trump presidency. This timely volume brings together an assemble of international experts to explore the origins and process of the trade war. It considers the material and ideational factors behind the unraveling of a decades-long economic engagement in terms of a two-level game involving the domestic and international politics in both countries. The book sheds much light on the trade war and the dynamics of the emerging great-power competition between China and the United States.

Culminating between 20182020, the trade-war dynamics between the US and China attracted economists' attention but remained poorly understood in IR terms. Donald Trump and Xi Jinping's unique personalities loomed large here but there were also deep-seated structural issues at play. Beyond personalization, and ever sensitive to the ideological dimension in either country, Professor Hua has fortunately recruited a group of world-leading experts to plug the knowledge gap. Theoretically and historically-informed, his panel of political scientists deliver the first truly comprehensive and balanced account of the trade clash between Trump and Xi. This is a thought-provoking volume of immense intellectual insight and clarity that will appeal to academics and students alike. It is a must read for those wanting to gage how the Biden Administration might bargain with China in the months to come.

Author Bio

Shiping Hua is the Calvin and Helen Lang Distinguished Chair in Asian Studies and Director of the Asian Studies Program at the University of Louisville.