The Pacific Century

The Former Miss Canada-Turned-Activist Fights for Human Rights

Misha and John welcome a special guest, Anastasia Lin. Lin grew up in China, emigrated to Canada at the age of 13, and won the Miss World Canada title in 2015. She won international attention when Beijing barred her from participating in the world pageant because of her outspoken advocacy for human rights in China. She shares her experience growing up in China, how to change the increasing authoritarianism there, and why she became such a fierce critic of Beijing.

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Geopolitics Rolls On

Misha and John try to hold a virus-free discussion. They first address the possible consequences of the rumored death or incapacitation of North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un. Next they discuss South Korea’s election, with the landslide victory of the liberal ruling party. Misha and John then argue over whether China benefits from these developments and whether it is taking advantage of the pandemic crisis to bolster its position in Hong Kong and the region.

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Suing China?

Misha and John welcome to the podcast James Kraska, Charles H. Stockton Professor of International Maritime Law at the Naval War College, to discuss ways in which international law may hold China responsible for allowing the coronavirus pandemic to spread. Misha then discusses his recent article arguing that the Chinese Communist Party’s efforts to blame the world for the pandemic illustrates the beginning of a new Cold War between the U.S. and China.

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The Pandemic, China, and the End of Globalization

Misha and John discuss whether the coronavirus pandemic will help or harm China’s standing in the world.  They begin by welcoming Misha’s new book, Asia’s New Politics: Essays on Reshaping the Into-Pacific, out this May from Hoover Institution Press.  They turn to the lessons from the different responses to the pandemic in China, East Asia, Europe, and the United States.  They argue over whether China’s public relations campaign to defend itself will succeed, whether China’s relative power and influence in the world will increase or decrease because of its public health failures, and what policies we should adopt toward China now.

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The Coronavirus Spreads

Misha and John mark the first anniversary of the podcast by focusing on the continuing coronavirus controversy. They discuss whether the Chinese government’s response to the epidemic will become the rare event that challenges the legitimacy of the Xi regime. They ask if Beijing’s clumsy effort will hasten an international realignment away from China. They conclude with comparisons between the US and Chinese public health systems.

The Epidemic Hits

Misha and John return for their first show in the year of the rat. They discuss the coronavirus epidemic sweeping China, and they observe that Beijing's ineffective response is adding to the growing distrust of the government among average Chinese. They next address Tsai Ing-wen’s landslide victory in the Taiwan 2020 presidential election. Misha and John close with their thoughts on the phase I US-China trade deal and likely next steps in the economic relationship between the world’s two largest economies.

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At the Barricades in Hong Kong

Misha and John return after an extended sabbatical. They discuss the burning issue in Asia — the democracy protests in Hong Kong — with Jillian Melchior of the Wall Street Journal editorial page. After playing out the scenarios for how the Hong Kong protests end, Misha and John take up Misha’s recent article on the collapse of pork production in China and the political pressure of rising food prices on the Xi regime.

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Richard McGregor, The Party, and Pushback against Xi Jinping? Also, South Korea and Japan trade war heats up

Xi Jinping is usually touted as the most powerful Chinese leader since Mao Zedong. How has he pulled power into his hands, and is there a reaction to his strength? Richard McGregor discusses this, as well as looks back at his popular book The Party, ten years after its publication. Meanwhile, Japan and South Korea are falling into a trade war; is it about economics or the poor political relations between the two? How low will relations between America's two closest allies sink?

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Trump versus China: John Pomfret Reacts

Hoover Institution fellows Misha Auslin and John Yoo interview John Pomfret, the former Washington Post and Associated Press reporter in China.  Pomfret discusses his response to an open letter in the Washington Post, signed by dozens of leading US foreign policy and China scholars, criticizing the Trump administration for making China “an enemy.”  He explains “why the United States doesn’t need to return to a gentler China policy."

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Hong Kong, the G-20, and the North Korea visit: Sound and Fury Signifying ?

Presidents Trump and Xi meet at the G-20 meetings in Osaka and decide to restart trade negotiations, and then President Trump took a remarkable step across the DMZ into North Korean territory.  Misha and John address these developments, and also the massive Hong Kong protests, trade developments, and divisions within the US foreign policy community.

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