Students and faculty members came together Sunday night to discuss the often shaky relationship between the United States and China.
The Chinese Students and Scholars Association sponsored the discussion, held in Knight Library, in an effort to spark debate among college students on this controversial issue, said CSSA president Julia Wu.
Pete Suttmeier and Hu Tao, both University professors in the political science department, spoke before the small group gathered in the Browsing Room about the many factors affecting U.S. and China relations.
Suttmeier briefly outlined the history of U.S.-China interactions from the 1970s to the present. The relationship between these two countries has never been stable, he said; rather, it has fluctuated widely over the years.
Prior to the 1970s, he said, there was very little contact between the U.S. and China. But beginning late in that decade and continuing through the 1980s, the relationship between the countries seemed to be improving, Suttmeier said.
On July 6, 1989, however, the Tiananmen Square incident changed the image many Americans had of China, according to Suttmeier.
Much discussion was given to the more recent straining of diplomatic relations between the two countries in light of the downed American spy plane and fracas over Taiwan last week.
Improving this rocky relationship will be difficult, and there are likely to be more conflicts between the two countries in the future, Suttmeier said. There are ways that the situation can be improved, he said, but it will require the cooperation of both countries.
“Clearly we’re in some delicate times,” he said. “Both sides need to show considerate finesse and understanding.”
Following Suttmeier’s presentation, Tao gave a brief lecture on the economic factors affecting this issue. The U.S. and China each possess different economic advantages, he said, and combining these resources would benefit both countries.
After Tao and Suttmeier spoke, a panel discussion was held, in which members of the audience were given the opportunity to ask questions of the speakers.
Graduate student Brian Wong said he agreed with most of the points made by the speakers. Wong, a political science major, added that he believed the Bush administration’s recent actions toward China would only increase tensions between the countries.
CSSA members decided to sponsor the discussion in light of heavy media coverage recently on U.S.-China relations, Wu said.
“We realized that a lot of people are very interested in this issue,” she said.