Podcast appearances and mentions of Susan Thornton

Steven Ricchiuto, Mizuho Securities Chief US Economist, reacts to a resilient US jobless claims report and cautions that the recession the market is pricing-in doesn't happen. Stuart Kaiser, Citi Head of US Equity Trading Strategy, says bullishness likely has a wider window to perform going into 2024. Susan Thornton, Paul Tsai China Center at Yale University Senior Fellow, expects a tumultuous year ahead for US-China relations. Robert Fishman, Moffettnathanson Sr. Research Analyst, discusses the potential merger of Warner Bros. Discovery and Paramount Global.Get the Bloomberg Surveillance newsletter, delivered every weekday. Sign up now: https://www.bloomberg.com/account/newsletters/surveillance See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's Tuesday, November 28th, A.D. 2023. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard at www.TheWorldview.com.  I'm Adam McManus. (Adam@TheWorldview.com) By Kevin Swanson Nigerian police now persecuting Christians there Christians in Nigeria have experienced a great deal of persecution at the hands of Muslim terrorist organizations. And now, the Nigerian police have added to the persecution of Christians. The International Center for Investigative Reporting finds that religious police, the Hisbah, are now arresting women who profess to be Christian in the Kano State. Apparently, some Muslim women are also subjected to beatings by the police for not playing by certain religious rules. Also, five Christian girls were recently arrested by police, and prevented from attending church in the repressive state, reports International Christian Concern. Why the Chinese Christian population is hard to pin down How many Christians are there in China?   Official government numbers put it at 28 million.  Another survey put the number at 43 million. David Curry, President of Global Christian Relief, wrote a column for Fox News Digital in which he pointed out that government numbers may be inaccurate in that they may not count children. Plus, the Chinese may be reticent to respond to government inquiries concerning faith issues. In addition, 72% of self-identified Christians in the survey are women, according to Pew Research. Iran close to going nuclear In the ongoing nuclear arms race, Iran has achieved what America had at Los Alamos, New Mexico in July of 1945. According to the most recent report from the International Atomic Energy Agency, Iran has finally accumulated sufficient uranium to make two nuclear bombs, about the size dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Southeast Asia is a “nuclear tinderbox” Writing for The Japan Times, Susan Thornton, former U.S. assistant Secretary of State for East Asia, called Southeast Asia a “nuclear tinderbox.” She wrote, “A full-scale arms race is under way. North Korea's stockpile of nuclear weapons and missiles has grown and Kim [Jong Un] has called for an ‘exponential increase' in its arsenal.” The Council on Foreign Relations estimates that North Korea has enough material for more than 100 nuclear weapons. The group said, “It has successfully tested missiles that could strike the United States with a nuclear warhead, and the country touts the world's fourth-largest military.” Vatican not open to ordination of women or changes on homosexuality While mainline Protestant denominations have given way to women and homosexuals in church office, the Vatican is pushing back against the German Catholic Synod seeking liberalization of church regulation. The Catholic News Agency reports that an October 23rd letter reminds the Catholic bishops of “potential disciplinary consequences for any defying the teaching of the Church” on the ordination of women and changes in the Church's teaching on homosexuality. And furthermore, these matters are off the table for discussions in the upcoming meetings. CNN horrified that Speaker Johnson has advocated righteous laws CNN's K-file, their investigative team, dutifully studied 100 radio interviews of U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, an evangelical Christian. They discovered that he suggested “imprisoning doctors who perform abortions after six weeks; the Ten Commandments [should be] prominently displayed in public buildings; an elimination of anti-hate-crime laws; Bible study in public schools; criminalization of homosexuality.”   The left wing news source was also shocked that Johnson testified that “one of the primary purposes of the law in civil government is to restrain evil.”  He also said, “We have to acknowledge collectively that man is inherently evil and needs to be restrained.” Romans 13:4 reminds us that “[the ruler] is God's servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for He does not bear the sword in vain. For He is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God's wrath on the wrongdoer.” To thank House Speaker Mike Johnson for his bold, Christian stands, you can call (202) 225-2777 or write 568 Cannon House Office Building, Washington, DC, 20515-1804. Speaker Johnson has endorsed Trump for president In other House Speaker news, Johnson has endorsed Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential race, reports U.S. News and World Report. Only 10% of small businesses looking for college degrees A recent Red Balloon survey of 905 small business owners found that two-thirds of them do not believe that college graduates have "relevant skills" which would be of any benefit to their companies, reports the Washington Times. Big concerns were a lack of maturity and a decent work ethic. Only 10% of these business owners are looking for candidates with college degrees. Gold, the Nasdaq, and home prices Since January 2019, gold is up 68% — as compared to the 20% inflation increase.  To compare, Monday's Nasdaq index is also up exactly 68% since January 2019.  Over the same time frame, the median home price increased by 58%.   The median new home price is up 17.6%, year over year, now at $409,300. Economy squeezing Americans Americans are feeling the squeeze in the pocket book.   WalletHub found that 28% of Americans plan to spend less on Christmas gifts this year over last year, while only 14% are spending more. 34% of Americans are foregoing gifts altogether and a quarter of the population are still working on paying off debt from last Christmas.  Consumer spending is up And finally, Bloomberg and Adobe Analytics report that consumer spending is up. Black Friday retail sales were up 7.5% year over year. But the business site is reporting a huge increase in credit card purchases.  These buy now/pay later purchases increased by 72% the week before Thanksgiving.  Let's remember the words of Jesus this Christmas season. “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.” (Matthew 6:24) Close And that's The Worldview in 5 Minutes on this Tuesday, November 28th in the year of our Lord 2023. Subscribe by iTunes or email to our unique Christian newscast at www.TheWorldview.com. Or get the Generations app through Google Play or The App Store. I'm Adam McManus (Adam@TheWorldview.com). Seize the day for Jesus Christ. Print story Russia wants to prohibit adoptions to sex-change-affirming countries Russian lawmakers are considering a law which would ban all Russian adoptions to most Western nations including the U.S The legislation would not allow adoptions to citizens of countries where sex changes are allowed. 

James Athey, Abrdn Investment Director, says credit spread are too tight. Matthew Luzzetti, Deutsche Bank Chief US Economist, still expects a recession and for equities to come down. Susan Thornton, Yale University Law School Paul Tsai China Center Senior Fellow, says China needs households to start spending. Joe Feldman, Telsey Advisory Group Senior Research Analyst and Assistant Director of Research, discusses Walmart lifting its profit outlook on a boost from US shoppers. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Taylors of Tabernacle have spent a week together seeking spiritual renewal, a practice that started two hundred years ago. Susan Thornton shares about her family tradition with managing editor Beca Bruder, explaining the vision and practical tasks required to sustain a long-enduring spiritual revival.

Who coined that term anyway? It's true, there have been insults and lots of them. Why? Secretary of State Tony Blinken will visit China this weekend and Susan Thornton, Senior Fellow at Yale University Law School's Paul Tsai China Center and former US diplomat, joins us with her perspective on the complexities of China's diplomacy today.  

Tension between the United States and China has intensified, and the U.S. is expressing growing concerns over China's relationship with Russia. Given the current political climate, is it still possible for the two nations to cooperate, and what could be the consequences of a deteriorating relationship? Join us for a discussion with former U.S. diplomat and Fellow at Yale School of Law's Paul Tsai China Center, Susan Thornton, to analyze the recent developments in the U.S.-China relationship.Follow us at:Network2020.orgTwitter: @Network2020LinkedIn: Network 20/20Facebook: @network2020Instagram: @network_2020Music by Joseph McDadeNews clips courtesy of The Platform NZ and The Military Show.Follow us at:Network2020.orgTwitter: @Network2020LinkedIn: Network 20/20Facebook: @network2020Instagram: @network_2020

To commemorate the 10th anniversary of the China in the World podcast, Carnegie China is launching a series of lookback episodes, using clips from previous interviews to put current international issues in context. For the first episode in this series, the podcast looks back on ten years of U.S.-China diplomacy following the postponement of U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken's planned visit to China in early 2023.The China in the World podcast has spanned three U.S. administrations and covered several historic bilateral meetings, from Obama and Xi's summit in Sunnylands, California in June 2013 to Trump and Xi's meeting at Mar-a-Lago in April 2017. This episode gives a glimpse into the evolution of U.S.-China relations during a pivotal decade and sheds light on what can be accomplished during high-level meetings–what went right and what went wrong during past meetings. The episode features clips from Paul Haenle's interviews with over 20 American, Chinese, and international experts on foreign affairs: Stephen J. Hadley, former U.S. National Security Advisor, Xie Tao, Dean of the School of International Relations at Beijing Foreign Studies University, Yan Xuetong, Dean of the Institute of International Relations at Tsinghua University, Randall Schriver, former Assistant Secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs, Evan Medeiros, Professor at Georgetown University and former advisor to President Obama, Zhao Hai, research fellow at the National Strategy Institute at Tsinghua University, Jia Dazhong, professor at the School of International Studies at Peking University, Ashley Tellis, senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment, Danny Russel, former special assistant to President Obama and senior director for Asian Affairs on the National Security Council, Jake Sullivan, National Security Advisor and former senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment, Cui Liru, former president of the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, Doug Paal, former vice president for studies at the Carnegie Endowment, Graham Allison, Director of the Belfer Center at the Harvard Kennedy School, William J. Burns, CIA Director and former President of the Carnegie Endowment, Susan Thornton, former Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs at the Department of State, Evan Feigenbaum, Vice President for studies at the Carnegie Endowment, Jie Dalei, associate professor at the School of International Studies at Peking University, Da Wei, director of the Center for International Security and Strategy at Tsinghua University, Tong Zhao, senior fellow at Carnegie China, and Hoang Thi Ha, senior fellow at the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute.

The direction of the U.S.- China relationship will be critical to not only U.S. economic and security interests but to the future world order. However, it is unlikely that the differences between the two countries on matters like the South China Sea, Taiwan, trade, intellectual property, and how China treats its minority groups will be resolved with a change in leadership in Washington. What could be different in terms of U.S. foreign policy toward China under a Biden administration? And how have U.S. policies been perceived in China? Will there be an opportunity for a fresh start for U.S.- China relations? These questions will be discussed among Susan Thornton, former Acting Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs at the Department of State; Joseph Battat, Senior Lecturer of Global Economics and Management at the MIT Sloan School of Management; and Cheng Li, Director and Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution's John L. Thornton China Center.*This event will be co-hosted by Network 20/20 and the Institute of Current World Affairs.--This Virtual Briefing Series event was originally hosted on December 3rd, 2020.Music by Joseph McDade.Upcoming events: https://network2020.org/upcoming-events/Follow us at:Twitter: @Network2020LinkedIn: Network 20/20Facebook: @network2020Instagram: @network_2020Follow us at:Network2020.orgTwitter: @Network2020LinkedIn: Network 20/20Facebook: @network2020Instagram: @network_2020

President Biden recently completed his first trip to Asia, during which he launched Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity with a dozen partners in the region. On this episode, David Dollar speaks with retired U.S. diplomat Susan Thornton about the pillars of the new framework, its relationship to existing trade relationships like CPTPP, RCEP, and ASEAN, and what incentives nations in the region have for cooperation with the U.S. and China. Thornton, a senior fellow in the Paul Tsai China Center at Yale Law School and a nonresident senior fellow John L. Thornton China Center at Brookings, also addresses U.S. economic diplomacy with Europe and how Russia's war on Ukraine may affect America's relationship with China and Asia more broadly. Show notes and transcript: https://brook.gs/3Go06eF  Dollar & Sense is part of the Brookings Podcast Network. Send feedback to podcasts@brookings.edu, and follow us on Twitter at @policypodcasts.

Sizing up the new Cold War ... Is China complicit in Russia's invasion of Ukraine? ... Dissecting the Russia-Ukraine, China-Taiwan analogy ... Understanding Taiwan's status – and vulnerability – in the international system ... Did US foreign policy make Russia's invasion of Ukraine more likely? ... What role did the US play in Ukraine's 2014 revolution? ... Was Bush 41 the golden age of American post-Cold-War diplomacy? ... Susan: Trump shook things up but was a blight on America's reputation ... Bob has an idea: How about a world without war? ...

Sizing up the new Cold War ... Is China complicit in Russia's invasion of Ukraine? ... Dissecting the Russia-Ukraine, China-Taiwan analogy ... Understanding Taiwan's status – and vulnerability – in the international system ... Did US foreign policy make Russia's invasion of Ukraine more likely? ... What role did the US play in Ukraine's 2014 revolution? ... Was Bush 41 the golden age of American post-Cold-War diplomacy? ... Susan: Trump shook things up but was a blight on America's reputation ... Bob has an idea: How about a world without war? ...

This week on Sinica, Kaiser is joined by Susan Thornton, former Acting Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs and a veteran diplomat. Susan makes a compelling case for the importance of diplomacy in the U.S.-China relationship — and the alarming absence of real diplomacy over the last several years. She helps interpret American and Chinese diplomatic engagements over the Russo-Ukrainian War and assesses the prospects for China actually playing a role in negotiating an end to the conflict.3:42 – What diplomacy is really all about, and why it's so conspicuously absent7:32 – Does it make sense for the U.S. to expect Beijing to outright condemn the invasion?10:40 – What should the U.S. actually expect from China?13:55 – Is China willing and able to play a meaningful role as a mediator?17:06 – What's up with the leaks?21:32 – Reading the readouts28:20 – What is China's optimal endgame here?32:06 – China's "southern strategy"34:50 – Do upcoming U.S. midterm and presidential elections matter to Beijing?41:29 – What are we missing when we talk about China's perspectives on the war?A full transcript of this interview is available on SupChina.comRecommendations:Susan: Butter Lamp, a short film directed by Hu Wei, nominated for Best Live Action Short at the 87th Academy AwardsKaiser: Birria Tacos. Here's a good recipe! (These should come with a doctor's warning) See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The House of Representatives last week passed the COMPETES Act, its counterpart to a Senate bill last year on competitiveness with China. What's in the bill? What would it do? How similar is it to the Senate bill? And how close are we to a major piece of China legislation?Benjamin Wittes sat down on Lawfare Live with Susan Thornton, a retired U.S. diplomat who is currently a visiting lecturer in law at Yale Law School and a senior fellow at the Paul Tsai China Center, and Jordan Schneider, the host of the ChinaTalk podcast and newsletter. They talked about the legislation, the prospects for reconciling it for the Senate bill, and whether this is a real start or just window dressing.Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/lawfare. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Tensions between China and Taiwan have been described as the worst in 40 years after the Chinese air force intensified its overflights into the Taiwanese air defence zone earlier this month. Susan Thornton spent nearly 30 years working on Eurasia and East Asia for the US state department. Currently she is a senior fellow at Yale Law School's Paul Tsai China Center.

Tensions between China and Taiwan have been described as the worst in 40 years after the Chinese air force intensified its overflights into the Taiwanese air defence zone earlier this month. Susan Thornton spent nearly 30 years working on Eurasia and East Asia for the US state department. Currently she is a senior fellow at Yale Law School's Paul Tsai China Center.

Susan Thornton was good enough to join me in the Virtual Studio to examine closely the US-China relationship and the rising tensions between the two over Taiwan. The podcast interview was a perfect opportunity to examine more closely with Susan the current Biden foreign policy of ‘competition without catastrophe' with China and to assess particularly the risks of conflict between the two over Taiwan. Susan brings real knowledge of the current players in the Administration and insights from her many years in the State Department. Susan was acting Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian Affairs when she retired from the State Department after a 28-year diplomatic career focused primarily on East and Central Asia. Susan worked on China and Korea policy, including stabilizing relations with Taiwan, the U.S.-China Cyber Agreement, the Paris Climate Accord, and she led a successful negotiation in Pyongyang for monitoring of the Agreed Framework on denuclearization We have been lucky enough in the last several years to have Susan join us, for our China and the West Dialogue (CWD) Project. Susan is currently the Visiting Lecturer in Law at Yale Law School and Senior Fellow at the Paul Tsai China Center there. Susan has much to say on the current state of relations between China and the US so join us for this insightful podcast.

U.S.-China relations are arguably at their worst point since diplomatic recognition in 1979, and may be getting worse. In this environment, American researchers organized by the National Committee on American Foreign Policy and the American Friends Service Committee undertook a systematic audit of the U.S.-China Strategic & Economic Dialogue (S&ED) to see what benefits were expected from bilateral diplomacy in the past and whether those benefits were realized. The report that emerged reveals that the United States benefited significantly from the S&ED process. Major areas of progress include stabilizing the international financial system after the global financial crisis, working through regulatory and technical issues culminating in the Paris Agreement, and jointly responding to the Ebola crisis in West Africa. On September 13, 2021 the National Committee on American Foreign Policy and the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations hosted a virtual program where Tiffany Barron, Rorry Daniels, Dan Jasper, and Susan Thornton discussed the successes and challenges of the S&ED process.

This week we have a review of the US-China relationship following Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman's meeting in Tianjin. We talk with former long-time diplomat and China expert Susan Thornton about how the US and China should each adjust their policy approach in order to get out of the current standstill in bilateral dialogue. Susan currently serves as a senior fellow and research scholar at the Paul Tsai China Center and as a nonresident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution.  Susan offers her analysis of the major themes guiding President Biden's China strategy and what a possible meeting between the two country's leaders could look like. She also gives her take on whether the US is likely to join a trans-Pacific trade agreement and finally, how the US needs to ready itself for the current shift in the international system as China rises as a leading power. 

On July 1, the Communist Party of China celebrated its 100th anniversary. General Secretary Xi Jinping delivered a speech that unsettled some China watchers with provocative comments about the existing world order. Symptomatic of increasing U.S.-China tensions, Xi's speech comes amid efforts in both countries to decouple these two large and intertwined national economies. But is decoupling in either country's best interests? This week, the Eurasia Group Foundation's Mark Hannah is joined by China experts Ryan Hass and Susan Thornton, who suggest a different approach. While competition may define the U.S.-China relationship for decades to come, Hass and Thornton argue that leaders would be wise to not overlook areas of cooperation or become so focused on the other that they put their domestic aspirations at risk. Ryan Hass served in the Obama White House and is now Senior Fellow and the Michael H. Armacost Chair at the Brookings Institution. He is the author of the book, Stronger: Adapting America's China Strategy in an Age of Competitive Interdependence. You can follow Ryan on Twitter at @ryanl_hass.   Susan Thornton served in the United States Department of State for nearly thirty years, focusing on East and Central Asia issues. Currently, Susan is Senior Fellow at the Yale Paul Tsai China Center. You can follow Susan on Twitter at @suea_thornton.  

In this episode, we explore the global and Chinese domestic impacts of the continued industrialization of China following the Mao era with the help of accomplished career diplomat to Eastern Europe and Asia, Ms. Susan Thornton.  (Recorded May 19, 2021)

The first talks between Beijing and the Biden administration concluded Friday in Anchorage, Alaska. Although both sides labeled them constructive, there was no shortage of tough and candid words. Susan Thornton, an American diplomat who formerly served as the assistant secretary for East Asian and Pacific affairs, and Stanford University's Elizabeth Economy join Nick Schifrin to discuss. PBS NewsHour is supported by - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/about/funders

The first talks between Beijing and the Biden administration concluded Friday in Anchorage, Alaska. Although both sides labeled them constructive, there was no shortage of tough and candid words. Susan Thornton, an American diplomat who formerly served as the assistant secretary for East Asian and Pacific affairs, and Stanford University's Elizabeth Economy join Nick Schifrin to discuss. PBS NewsHour is supported by - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/about/funders

Airdate March 14, 2021: Biden's $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan was signed into law Friday. So, will the plan deliver on its promises? Paul Krugman and Larry Summers debate the bill's size and its long-term consequences. Then, what you need to know about the Quad after Biden's meeting with leaders from India, Australia and Japan on Friday. The bloc of four nations seeks to counter China's growing influence while promoting a "free and open Indo-Pacific." Former State Department official Susan Thornton tells Fareed how the group could reshape geopolitics in the East. And the biotech revolution brought about innovative solutions to the Covid-19 crisis. How will it change the world next? Walter Isaacson tells Fareed.  GUESTS: Larry Summers, Paul Krugman, Susan Thornton, Walter Isaacson  To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

China regards the island of Taiwan as a breakaway province; Taiwan's leaders say it is an independent state. As China rises to superpower status, it has shown greater interest in reclaiming territory long regarded as its own, in the South China Sea, along the Himalayan border – and in Taiwan. The growing tensions could drag the US into the fray. To discuss the implications for security, peace and the people of Taiwan, we have three distinguished experts: Prof Steve Tsang, director of the SOAS China Institute; Susan Thornton, a retired senior US diplomat and Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution; and Dr Chun-Yi Lee, director of the Taiwan Studies programme at the University of Nottingham.

Susan Thornton, retired senior U.S. diplomat and visiting lecturer in law at Yale Law School, joins David Firestein in a discussion on how the incoming Biden Administration may approach relations with China and re-engage allies in Asia.Visit: bushchinafoundation.org

October 1, 2020 - Daniel Russel, Vice President for International Security and Diplomacy at the Asia Society Policy Institute, and Susan Thornton, Project Director of the Forum on Asia-Pacific Security at the National Committee on American Foreign Policy and Visiting Lecturer in Law at Yale University, join Senior Director Stephen Noerper for a discussion on the upcoming US Presidential election, with an eye to US policy implications for Korea and Northeast Asia. This all-star session draws on the vast foreign service experience of both Russel and Thornton, who helped lead US policy respectively as Assistant Secretary and Acting Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs. For more information, please visit the link below: https://www.koreasociety.org/policy-and-corporate-programs/item/1430-looking-toward-the-us-presidential-election-and-korea-and-northeast-asia-policy

On August 17, 2020, the National Committee hosted a virtual program with retired American diplomats Susan Thornton and Beatrice Camp to discuss the place of diplomacy in U.S. policy toward China and beyond.

Susan Thornton, former senior U.S. diplomat, returns to the Sinica Podcast this week. This conversation was recorded during the Princeton U.S.-China Coalition virtual event on August 1, 2020. Kaiser and Susan discuss the value of American diplomacy with China and if such engagement can help salvage what remains of a deeply strained bilateral relationship between China and the United States. 9:27: Swapping diplomacy for machismo at the State Department23:06: The sharp falloff in candidates entering the U.S. Foreign Service28:29: Fatalism and China34:08: Distrust and vilify, Washington’s new China policyRecommendations:Susan: Mr. X and the Pacific: George F. Kennan and American Policy in East Asia, by Paul J. Heer. Kaiser: The TV show Better Call Saul, available on Netflix.

This episode of Asia Unscripted is a compilation of highlights from the seventh session of the China 101 webinar series, hosted by the US-Asia Institute. This China 101 session, entitled “US-China Relations: Rebuilding Trust” was held on July 20th. The speakers featured in the webinar were Susan Thornton and Dr. Shao Yuqun. Susan Thornton is a Visiting Lecturer in Law at Yale Law School, Senior Fellow at the Paul Tsai China Center and the former acting Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs at the Department of State, and Dr. Shao is the Director of Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau Studies at the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies, and Senior Member at the Center for American Studies. The event was moderated by Kent Lucken, Chairman and Trustee Emeritus of the US-Asia Institute.Please be reminded that the US-Asia Institute is a nonpartisan, non-advocacy organization with no policy agenda. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the official position of the US-Asia Institute.Support the show (https://www.usasiainstitute.org/support-usai-ch)

How might coronavirus reshape geopolitics? For some, the answer is clear: China is on the rise. While Washington embraces “America First” and abdicates its global leadership role, they argue, Beijing is stepping up to fill the void. But others see a global future where Beijing’s standing is diminished, not bolstered. Panelists Kurt M. Campbell, Kishore Mahbubani, Minxin Pei, and Susan Thornton.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As most international relations specialists would agree, the most consequential relationship now, and for the foreseeable future in the global order, is that between China and the West. There is a growing rivalry between China and the United States, and the rising tensions raises difficult global order questions for all the actors in the international system. Kerry Brown is one of a number of China and international relations experts that have joined the Vision20 principals to examine the future of global order in the face of a growing tension between the two leading states in the international system, the United States and China. The Vision20 principals, Colin Bradford, Brookings and Yves Tiberghien, UBC and myself here at the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy at the University of Toronto launched the China and the West Dialogue (CWD) this spring, and with the support of Kevin Gallagher from Boston University, we planned our first workshop. The meeting became virtual, of course, with the pandemic and this initial workshop was joined with experts and former officials from Latin America, the United States, Canada, the UK and Europe. The results of the meeting including identification of the participants and CWD statements that emerged can be found at the Global Development Policy (GDP) Center at Boston University (http://www.bu.edu/gdp/cwd/). Many of the experts that joined us at the BU virtual meeting also prepared Background Notes. All these Notes can be found at the CWD site at the Global Summitry Project website. The Vision20 principals also planned to gather experts at the 4th annual Global Solutions Summit in Berlin. That too turned into a virtual gathering. Several CWD participants prepared video presentations. These video presentations can be found at the GSS 2020 theme, the ‘Future of Multilateralism and Global Governance’ where Colin Bradford provided the keynote and the panel included Chen Dongxiao, President of SIIS in Shanghai, Susan Thornton, Senior Fellow and Research Scholar at Yale Law School Paul Tsai Center and Kerry Brown, Lau China Institute, King’s College London spoke on: ‘How is it Possible to avoid the emergence of another bipolar competitive era’. As noted, Kerry was one of the video panelists. I was keen to bring Kerry back into the virtual studio (You can listen to Kerry Brown’s earlier podcast, Ep 28 ‘Shaking the Global Order’) to discuss his Background Note from the BU meeting and his panel appearance at the GSS. I wanted to dig further into his view that the global governance system was evolving to a ‘dual architecture’ or a ‘dual track world’ with ‘two different operating systems’. What are the implications of all this for US-China relations and indeed global governance relations? Kerry Brown is currently Professor of Chinese Studies and Director of the Lau China Institute, Kings College London. Before that 2012-2015 Kerry was Professor of Chinese Politics and Director of the China Studies Centre at the University of Sydney, Australia. Kerry has served in both the public and the academic sectors. From 1998 to 2005, he worked at the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office, as First Secretary at the British Embassy in Beijing, and then as Head of the Indonesia, Philippine and East Timor Section. Kerry has written a great deal about Chinese politics and its foreign policy. Probably his most well-known study is China's Dream: The Culture of Chinese Communism and the Secret Sources of Its Power.

Guests:Ketian Zhang is an Assistant Professor of International Security in the Schar School of Policy and Government at George Mason University.Scott Swift is a retired admiral with nearly 40 years of experience in the U.S. Navy. Swift is a former commander of U.S. Pacific Fleet and was previously a Robert E Wilhelm Fellow at MIT’s Center for International Security.Susan Thornton is a retired senior U.S. diplomat with almost 30 years of experience with the U.S. State Department in Eurasia and East Asia. Until July 2018, Thornton was Acting Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs at the Department of State. She is currently a Senior Fellow and Research Scholar at the Yale University Paul Tsai China Center and a Non-Resident Fellow at the Brookings Institution.  International Security Article:This episode is based on, Ketian Zhang, “Cautious Bully: Reputation, Resolve, and Beijing’s Use of Coercion in the South China Sea,”Vol. 44, No. 1 (Summer 2019), pp. 117-159.Additional Related Readings:Susan A. Thornton, “Is American Diplomacy with China Dead?” The Foreign Service Journal, July/August 2019.Ketian Zhang, “A View from the United States,” National Commentaries, The Asan Forum, Vol. 7, No. 3 (May-June 2019).M. Taylor Fravel, "Why does China care so much about the South China Sea? Here are 5 reasons," Monkey Cage, The Washington Post, July 13, 2016.Originally aired on November 14, 2019

Whether you only read President Trump's tweets or listen exclusively to Democratic presidential candidates public statements, it is clear that China is not only a crucial national security challenge for the U.S., but it is quickly becoming a huge domestic political issue. In this episode, Susan Thornton and I unpack the hype inside and outside of Washington around China and discuss how it grew economically and strategically in the past 50+ years. We dive deep into how the Trump administration deals with China, and Thornton's own experience in that. For anyone interested in China, this is a great episode!  Susan Thornton was a career diplomat, serving almost 30 years at the State Department, and retiring as the Acting Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, basically meaning she ran everything Asia-related at the State Department. In addition to leadership roles in Washington, Thornton helped negotiate the U.S.-China Cyber agreement in 2015, and was involved in backchannel talks between the Trump administration and North Korea. She is currently a Visiting Lecturer in Law at Yale Law School and Senior Fellow at the Paul Tsai China Center, and also runs a family farm in Maine.  ___________________________________________ Recent Article by Thornton that much of the conversation is based on: https://www.afsa.org/american-diplomacy-china-dead Favorite Podcast: "Hidden Forces" Most insightful person to follow on social media: I don’t follow anyone closely, but I follow people from all sides of the spectrum and then use an aggregator to filter for the most useful stuff. But I mostly read for facts, not opinions and especially not twitter, which I despise. A book that has most shaped her thinking: "Crime and Punishment" by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

On July 3rd, 5 principals published a Scholars’ and Experts’ letter (Letter) in the Washington Post (WP) entitled ‘China is not an enemy’. Taylor Fravel, J. Stapleton Roy, Michael D Swaine, Ezra Vogel and Susan Thornton were the five who shepherded the letter to publication in the Opinion section of the WP. The Letter raised a fair degree of notice as it pushed back against those in the Community and in the U.S. Administration, who urged support for the Trump China policy including support for the current U.S.-China Trade War. This podcast with Susan was designed to understand how the principals came to consensus over the content of the Letter, the objectives of the Letter - its 7 propositions and what might be a better U.S. policy toward China. Susan is currently a Visiting Lecturer in Law at Yale Law School and Senior Fellow at the Paul Tsai China Center. Thornton was a career diplomat who worked at the United States State Department. She served as the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for East Asian Affairs from 2016 to 2018 and before that she worked as the Deputy Chief of Mission to the United States Embassy in Turkmenistan. In leadership roles in Washington, Thornton worked on China and Korea policy, including stabilizing relations with Taiwan, the U.S.-China Cyber Agreement, the Paris Climate Accord and led a successful negotiation in Pyongyang for monitoring of the Agreed Framework on denuclearization

The Washington Post recently published an open letter signed by five scholars and former government officials: M. Taylor Fravel, Stapleton Roy, Michael Swaine, Susan Thornton, and Ezra Vogel. The letter laid out seven main arguments for why the U.S. should not treat China as an enemy, and not surprisingly, the letter got a lot of pushback from more hawkish China-watchers. This week on Sinica, Kaiser and Jeremy talk to Michael Swaine, the primary author of the open letter, about the origins and intentions of the letter and the reactions to it. Michael is a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.   What to listen for on this week’s Sinica Podcast:   17:40: Michael expands on a point highlighted in the letter that was met with criticism from the wider community — “We do not believe Beijing is an economic enemy or an existential national security threat that must be confronted in every sphere” — which he says was “in part intended to try to get at [the] point that [China] is not a predatory economic entity, as the White House tends to describe it.” He acknowledges economic malfeasance by China, but pushes back on prevailing opinions on Pennsylvania Avenue regarding China’s approach to trade with the United States, noting that “of course, it’s based upon this one-dimensional, categorical, hair-on-fire notion that the Chinese are this predatory economic entity that’s out to screw everybody except themselves. It’s a fundamentally cartoonish depiction of what China is.”   27:27: What do Chinese leaders think of the United States leadership and its change of posture in the past few years? Michael speculates on where he thinks the Chinese bureaucracy’s mind is regarding foreign policy, arguing that, while there may be two highly polarized parties on either end of the spectrum, Xi Jinping lies somewhere between the two: “Xi Jinping may actually be in that middle ground, not in terms of domestic policy, but in terms of foreign policy. That is to say, he recognizes, or he thinks that, China can’t get out of the world, it can’t un-integrate from the world, it’s got to keep on trying to work with the world. And there are very concrete reasons why the United States and China, even though they may not like each other in terms of values and such, they have to cooperate.”   He goes on to explain the shock that the leadership felt from the policy shifts after the 2016 election: “The Chinese leadership were taken aback by the rapidity and the extremity of the shift in the Trump administration against China. They didn’t quite expect it. They didn’t see it coming.”   36:52: What of the U.S.-China relationship beyond the current era of Trump? What should U.S. policymakers and interlocutors be articulating to their counterparts in Beijing? Michael provides his view: “We from China, a country with whom we can engage on issues that are vital to both countries and the world, we want a China whose interests are going to be supportive of continued global economic growth and development, and we want a China who is not bellicose or intimidating, through military arms, its neighbors…and that it needs to work with other parts of the international order in order to establish a more common approach to these security issues, economic issues, et cetera,”   46:05: What is the most effective approach in the U.S.-China relationship? Has the West “created a monster,” as described by Janos Kornai in a recent Financial Times article, or is there a case for reciprocity? Michael says that we “need to implement policies that are more based upon the idea of mutual accommodation,” and emphasizes the “problematic” view that “there is no such thing as mutual accommodation with the Chinese, because the Chinese will take what you give and they will pocket it and give you absolutely nothing in return.” He adds, “I think the historical record does not support that.”   Recommendations:   Jeremy: Read the letter ‘China is not an enemy’ in the Washington Post.   Michael: Check out the exhibit on the pre-Raphaelites in the United States, located in the National Gallery in Washington, or just check out some art in general.   Kaiser: The music of Anais Mitchell, a folk singer/songwriter, and the musical author behind the musical Hadestown.  

In this week’s podcast interview, WPR associate editor Elliot Waldman talks with former top U.S. diplomat Susan Thornton about the prospects for restarting U.S. trade talks with China, as well as nuclear negotiations with North Korea. They also discuss what the protests in Hong Kong mean for Beijing. If you like what you hear on Trend Lines and what you’ve read on WPR, you can sign up for our free newsletter to get our uncompromising analysis delivered straight to your inbox. The newsletter offers a free preview article every day of the week, plus three more complimentary articles in our weekly roundup every Friday. Sign up here. Then subscribe. Relevant Articles on WPR: Setting the Scene—and the Expectations—for the G-20 Summit in Japan Why a Cold War With China Would Be So Costly Hong Kong’s Protests Show the Biggest Challenge to China’s Rise Is at Home Trump, the ‘Great Negotiator,’ Risks Losing Deals With China, Iran and North Korea Trend Lines was produced and edited this week by Andrew Green. You can follow him on Twitter @_andrew_green. To send feedback or questions, email us at podcast@worldpoliticsreview.com.

Susan A. Thornton delivered the 2019 Barnett-Oksenberg Lecture on Sino-American Relations in Shanghai on Wednesday, May 15. Now in its twelfth year, this annual lecture affords the opportunity for a frank and forthright discussion of current and potential issues between the two countries; it is the first and only ongoing lecture series on U.S.-China relations that takes place on the Mainland. Susan A. Thornton is a retired senior U.S. diplomat with almost 30 years of experience with the U.S. State Department in Eurasia and East Asia. She is currently a senior fellow and research scholar at Yale Law School's Paul Tsai China Center. Until July 2018, Thornton was acting assistant secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs at the Department of State and led East Asia policy making amid crises with North Korea, escalating trade tensions with China, and a fast-changing international environment. In previous State Department roles, she worked on China and Korea policy and served in leadership positions at U.S. embassies in Central Asia, Russia, the Caucasus, and China. She speaks Russian and Mandarin Chinese. View more information on the Barnett-Oksenberg Lecture here: https://ncuscr.news/barnett-oksenberg

The National Committee on U.S.-China Relations (NCUSCR) hosted a conversation with four former White House officials who have served under Republican and Democratic administrations as the senior director for Asian Affairs on the National Security Council (NSC) – Kenneth Lieberthal, Evan Medeiros, Douglas Paal, and Daniel Russel – and Susan Thornton, the former acting assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs. NCUSCR Chair Carla Hills provided the introductions and President Stephen Orlins moderated. The discussion focused on how the two countries have moved from strategic cooperation to strategic competition, and what can be done to help ease bilateral tensions. View speaker bios: https://www.ncuscr.org/event/2019-annual-members-program  

Over three years into Trump’s presidency, U.S.-China trade and economic issues remain unresolved while security concerns are creeping into the bilateral agenda. In this podcast, Paul Haenle spoke with Susan Thornton, former assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, on the trajectory for bilateral ties and the potential for a crisis in U.S.-China relations.

Susan Thornton is interviewed for the U.S.-China Dialogue Podcast. Thornton addresses Chinese cyber hacking, setting up the summit between the U.S. and Chinese presidents in Florida, and how career officials handle political transitions.

Susan Thornton was Acting Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs at the Department of State during the first 18 months of the Trump administration. Prior to her departure, Thornton led East Asia policy-making amid crises with North Korea, escalating trade tensions with China, and a generally deteriorating environment in the United States for international economic and diplomatic engagement. She was the architect of the diplomatic pressure campaign on the North Korean regime, structured the administration’s initial approach to China, and developed the administration’s trademark Indo-Pacific Strategy. In previous leadership roles in Washington, Thornton worked on China and Korea policy, including stabilizing relations with Taiwan, the U.S.-China Cyber Agreement, the Paris Climate Accord and led a successful negotiation in Pyongyang for monitoring of the Agreed Framework on denuclearization. In her 18 years of overseas postings in Central Asia, Russia, the Caucasus and China, Thornton’s leadership furthered U.S. interests and influence and maintained programs and mission morale in a host of difficult operating environments. Prior to joining the Foreign Service, she was among the first State Department Fascell Fellows and served from 1989–90 at the U.S. Consulate in Leningrad. She was also a researcher at the Foreign Policy Institute from 1987–91. Thornton received her M.A. in International Relations and Soviet Studies from Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies in 1991 and earned an M.S. in National Strategy and Resource Management at the National Defense University’s Eisenhower School in 2010. Thornton received her B.A. from Bowdoin College in Economics and Russian in 1985, and taught in international secondary schools in Brussels, London, and Chile. She speaks Russian, Mandarin Chinese and French, is a member of numerous professional associations and is on the Board of Trustees for the Eurasia Foundation. The Charles Neuhauser Memorial Lecture is an annual lecture at the Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies, Harvard University. Read and download the transcript for this event on our website: https://fairbank.fas.harvard.edu/events/neuhauser-lecture-featuring-susan-thornton-can-we-live-with-china-a-roadmap-for-co-evolution/

This episode features Susan Thornton the Artist Director of Other Voices Theatre a local theatre here in Frederick! We chat about how she got into acting/directing, their upcoming season, and some fun behind the scenes details. Get excited! Website: http://www.othervoicestheatre.org/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/othervoicestheatrefrederick/ They are doing Chicago: https://www.showtix4u.com/boxoffice.php?submit=Search+for+Events&begin=1542968¤t_client=0400006912312437 Here is the cast pic we talked about: https://www.facebook.com/othervoicestheatrefrederick/photos/pb.512578862176263.-2207520000.1531353793./1487943731306433/?type=3&theater About: Other Voices is a community theatre with a professional feel. We focus on bringing our community approach to everything we do. Community Onstage. Community Offstage. iTunes - https://goo.gl/7HS1u4 Google Play - https://goo.gl/Whff9U Every Interview - http://www.wfre.com/interesting-people-podcast/

As a career U.S. foreign service officer and the acting assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs at the U.S. State Department, Susan Thornton has had a hand in the China policy of three successive American administrations. She was stationed in China for the years 2000-2007, and since then has held leadership positions in Washington connected to U.S.-China relations. Before 2000, she specialized in and was stationed in post-Soviet states, including Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan. She is an excellent interpreter of how U.S.-China relations have developed in the 21st century, and a key player in current U.S.-China policy. In this podcast: What really happened at Mar-a-Lago? Was the Trump team prepared? Was the timing of the Syria strike intentional? How does the U.S. administration plan to press China on North Korea, and will it continue to criticize China on human rights? This podcast was recorded live on April 12 at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., with the help of that university’s chapter of Global China Connection. Recommendations: Jeremy: “Logical Thinking” (逻辑思维 luóji sīwéi), a popular channel on WeChat that broadcasts a one-minute recording on an issue of society in mainland China every day. Search for “逻辑思维” on WeChat. Susan: The Immobile Empire, by Alain Peyrefitte, a book on Lord George Macartney’s famous trip to visit the Qianlong Emperor in 1793 and cross-cultural perceptions between the British and Chinese empires. Kaiser: Chinese History: A New Manual, by Endymion Wilkinson. The invaluable tome covering China from many different angles is often described as “magisterial.”