Click, Amy

English

University of Tulsa College of Law

Tulsa Journal of Comparative and International LawVolume 5 | Issue 2 Article 73-1-1998Bernstein and Munro: The Coming Conflict withChinaAmy ClickFollow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.law.utulsa.edu/tjcilPart of the Law CommonsThis Casenote/Comment is brought to you for free and open access by TU Law Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Tulsa Journalof Comparative and International Law by an authorized administrator of TU Law Digital Commons. For more information, please contact daniel-bell@utulsa.edu.Recommended CitationAmy Click, Bernstein and Munro: The Coming Conflict with China, 5 Tulsa J. Comp. & Int'l L. 413 (1997).Available at: http://digitalcommons.law.utulsa.edu/tjcil/vol5/iss2/7THE COMING CONFLICT WITH CHINABYRICHARD BERNSTEIN* AND ROSS H. MUNRO"Review byAmy ClickAccording to a poll conducted in six Chinese provinces by the ChinaYouth Research Center, 90 percent of Chinese youth think the UnitedStates tries to dominate China on specific issues, 96 percent of Chinesecollege students are of this same opinion.' It is this "love/hate" relation-ship2 among the Chinese that concerns the authors of the Coming Con-flict with China.The actors on the world stage were once discernable. Countries knewtheir enemies and their friends. The United States knew that communistcountries were the enemy and democratic countries were friends. How-ever, with the end of the Cold War the balance of power (if it can becalled a balance rather than forced cooperation) shifted with the mightyforce of the disintegration of the Soviet Union, and the end of the BerlinWall.In the New World, the concern for countries is not the Cold War"Domino Effect" but centuries old concerns of nationalism. Countriesacross the board are concerned with new fear that neighbors, may in thenext century, have the man power coupled with the will power to over-take and dominate countries that in the old scheme of things would havenever pondered such questions.Richard Bernstein has been Time's bureau chief in Beijing, for the United Na-tions, and in Paris. He is now a book critic for the New York Times. The Coming Con-flict with China is his fourth book. He lives in New York City.** Ross Munro is director of the Asia Program at the Foreign Policy Research In-stitute in Philadelphia. He was formerly a journalist in Asia. He has been Time Maga-zine's bureau chief in Hong Kong, Bangkok, and New Delhi. He has also been the Bei-jing correspondent for the Toronto Globe and Mail1. Jinn Min, Chinese Youth: LovelHate Relationship with the United States, ChinaFocus, Aug. 1, 1996, available at WL 11751455.2. See id, in the China Focus article supra, coins the term "love /hate" relationshipto describe the relationship between the United States and China.413TULSA J. COMP. & INT'L L.In The Coming Conflict with China, Richard Bernstein and RossMunro discuss these new concerns facing the nations of the world. Theauthors focus on relations with China, both in terms of their Asian neigh-bors and the United States. The book focuses mainly on the new roleChina is taking on the world stage. The authors point out, that while theUnited States has overlooked Chinese indiscretions3 and granted thecountry Most Favored Nation status, in the new scheme of things theUnited States should review carefully its policy toward China. Bernsteinand Munro lay out a plan for future dealings with China, involving afirmer stance on the part of the United States when dealing with China. Inthis same vein, they criticize the Clinton administration for what they feelis a too weak stand on Chinese foreign policy.This review will focus on the view China has taken regarding theUnited States and some of the theories espoused by Bernstein and Munro,regarding the next century. The authors of the book cover many othertopics in the course of the text, which will be left to the reader to reviewin depth.I. STRATEGIC PARTNERS TO SusPIcIous ENEMIESIronically, Newsweek lists China as the number one tourist destina-tion by the year 2020.' However, Bernstein *and Munro do not paint sucha "rosy" picture for the future of relations between the United States andChina. While the authors would possibly agree that such a tourist boonmight be possible in the coming century, they would probably foresee aforeboding message in the influx of tourists. That message being thatChina is preparing to enter the world stage as a major power, and thesteps the Chinese are taking may not always be advantageous to theUnited States World position.The authors begin their analysis of the situation in a manner that per-vades their thinking and theorizing throughout the book. "Only a decadeor so ago, in the mid-1980's, the two giants of the Pacific saw each otheras actual and future strategic partners, each of them interested in an alli-ance of necessity with the other to prevent the domination of Asia by theSoviet Union. But by the early 1990's, conflict came to dominate the re-lationship."5 Of course, now that the Soviet Union cannot be consideredan open threat, the authors contend that China is harboring intentions of3. Indiscretions such as China's stance on human rights.4. Tara Weingarten NEWSWEEK, Apr. 6, 1998 (citing the World Tourism Organiza-tion). By the year 2020, China will "rack up" 137.1 (millions) in tourist visits. TheUnited States is expected to have some 102.4 (millions) in tourists visits by the sameyear5. RICHARD BERNSTEIN & ROSS H. MUNRO, THE COMING CONFLICT WrrH CHINA 3(1997).414 [Vol. 5:4139ONFICT WITH CHNAbecoming dominant in Asia, and therefore the "new" American enemy.Bernstein and Munro use the term "aggressive" to describe the actionstaken be the Chinese, and "naive" to describe the way in which theUnited States is responding to the situation.6 While this may seem a cyni-cal way in which to describe the two countries, the authors make thepoint that the United States has three times been involved in major warsin Asia.7 Each time the United States has become involved, it has been toprevent a single power from gaining ascendancy within the region.8 Theauthors feel that there is little question that China will begin to stretch itswings toward ascendancy in the next decade.9Bernstein and Munro lay out a purposeful reason and plan of actionfor dealing with this "new threat." The authors' point out that after floun-dering for more than a century, China is now taking up the great powerrole that it believes to be its historic legacy.'" These ambitions are firedby what Berstein and Munro call "a nationalism of historic aggrievementand thwarted grandeur, a nationalism that is strange and therefore littleunderstood in the more satisfied and complacent West."" It is this lack ofunderstanding of the historic wounds felt by China that may, in the nextcentury, allow China to slowly advance to a place of dominance "rightunder the nose" of the United States and other western countries. Theauthors also point to the role the United States has played in Asia for atleast one hundred years. The consistent goal of the United States in Asiahas been to prevent any single country from dominating the region. 2Since the authors feel that this is precisely what China intends to do; theypredict that the interests of the United States and China are on course forcollision 3Interestingly enough, as Asia out paces Europe in strategic and eco-nomic importance,' 4 this collision may prove disastrous. The point of im-pact for the collision, may be the balance of power that has been in placewithin Asia since World War I."' This balance of power was carefully setin place with the occupation of Japan by the United States and the instal-lation of Douglas MacArthur to "democratize" the region. Once set inplace, this equilibrium has been overseen by the United States since the6. See id.7. See id. at 4.8. See id.9. See id.10. See BERNSTEIN & MUNRO, supra, note 7 at 4.11. See id.12. See id. at 5.13. See id.14. See id.15. See id.19981TULSA J. COMP. & INT'L L.end of World War I16 These factors combine, along with the situation inHong Kong 7 and Taiwan, 8 to allow the leader's of China to identify theUnited States as China's chief adversary in the world. 9II. NEVER HEGEMONYFear of hegemony,2" once reserved for the Soviet Union, now is oneof the biggest fears of the Chinese regarding the United States.2 TheChinese feel even a small loss of Chinese culture will lead to dominancewithin China by American culture. One Chinese author is quoted by theauthors as saying, "When we were students, we yearned for Americannovels and movies. "But today we find that country rather disgusting."'This opinion could be very telling to the future of relations between theUnited States and China. Chapter Two of The Coming Conflict withChina, deals quite fully with the topic of hegemony and the Chinese fearsabout dominance by other countries.JRI. CONCLUSIONAs stated supra, The Coming Conflict with China, deals effectivelywith the kaleidoscope of issues that are involved in any debate aboutChinese/American relations. Taking, in turn, the enemy status of theUnited States, criticism of the Clinton administration for its stance withChina, and what the authors call the "New China Lobby," the authorspresent a well organized and well-thought out analysis of the possibleissues that the two countries are facing and the extent to which they maybecome magnified in the next century. In the book's conclusion, theauthors present their view of how the United States should deal withChina in the coming century.As a reader who came of age during the fall of the Soviet Union andthe Berlin Wall, at times I felt the authors were searching for enemies.16. See BERSTEIN & MUNRO, supra note 7, at 5.17. It remains to be seen how the recent "reunification" with China will effect HongKong and its relations within the World.18. See BERNSTEIN & MUNRO supra, note 7 at 6. China may make advances to retakeTaiwan, as it views the area as part if it's national territory. Taiwan has been the centerof controversy within China, since the Nationalist loss in the Chinese Civil War. Upontheir loss, Chiang Kai-shek and the remnants of the Nationalist party fled to Taiwan andset up a nationalist government under the leadership of Kai-shek.19. See BERNSTEIN & MUNRO, supra note 7, at 8.20. Hegemony is defined by the American Heritage Dictionary as "the predominantinfluence of one state over others."21. See BERNSTEIN & MUNRO, supra note 7, at 8.22. See id. at 10.416 [Vol. 5:4131998] OJNF.CT WH CHINA 417They seem to believe America must have an enemy. While I agree, thatwith the end of the Cold War, the United States and other countries, mustbegin to reevaluate those who might be new enemies; I do not feel thisentails "looking behind every door" and every action to determine if thereis an underlying threat to the United States. I do however agree with theauthors that on some level, China may become a threat to the interests ofthe United States. I do hope, however, that we have learned hard lessonsfrom former involvement in Asia and the United States will take a hardlook, if at some future point, China provokes the United States into amilitary situation.The great value of this book is in the issues raised by Berstein andMunro. They are thought provoking and insightful. No matter how youfeel about China, or as I have stated, about "searching for enemies" thisbook gives the reader "food for thought" about the possibilities for thefuture of Chinese/American relations.

Bernstein and Munro: The Coming Conflict with China

https://digitalcommons.law.utulsa.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1016&context=tjcil

Bernstein and Munro: The Coming Conflict with China

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

University of Tulsa College of Law