Chinese Politics & The 19th Party Congress – Joseph Fewsmith

12/20/17 • 89 min

China’s 19th Party Congress, held in October 2017, drew significant anticipation and attention, not only among professional China watchers, for its domestic meaning and foreign policy signals, at a time when the PRC is staking out a new role on the world stage. In this episode, Boston University Professor Joseph Fewsmith, one of the leading experts on Chinese elite politics, discusses with Neysun Mahboubi the politics surrounding this latest Congress, from specific personnel decisions to broad policy implications, with special attention to the position of Xi Jinping. The episode was recorded on November 30, 2017 at the Center for the Study of Contemporary China, in connection with the Center’s post-Congress policy roundtable featuring Prof. Fewsmith and other experts.

Joseph Fewsmith is Professor of International Relations and Political Science at Boston University’s Pardee School of Global Studies, specializing in Comparative Politics, Chinese Domestic Politics, and Chinese Foreign Policy. He is the author or editor of eight books, including, most recently, The Logic and Limits of Political Reform in China (Cambridge 2013). His articles have appeared in such journals as Asian Survey, Comparative Studies in Society and History, The China Journal, The China Quarterly, Current History, The Journal of Contemporary China, Problems of Communism, and Modern China. He is also one of the seven regular contributors to the China Leadership Monitor, a quarterly web publication sponsored by Stanford University’s Hoover Institution.

Music credit: "Salt" by Poppy Ackroyd, follow her at http://poppyackroyd.com

Special thanks to Wendy Leutert and Nick Marziani

Music credit: "Salt" by Poppy Ackroyd, follow her at http://poppyackroyd.com

Special thanks to Wendy Leutert and Nick Marziani

Previous Episode

Trump's Visit to China – Avery Goldstein, Jacques deLisle, Amy Gadsden

President Trump's November 2017 visit to China, and four other Asian countries, comes at a charged time in US-China relations, when its perennial challenges and opportunities appear in particularly sharp relief. In this episode, Penn experts Avery Goldstein, Jacques deLisle, and Amy Gadsden discuss with Neysun Mahboubi the President's upcoming trip, with special attention to key topic areas that will be implicated by this week's meetings in Beijing and other Asian capitals. The episode was recorded on November 2, 2017 at the Center for the Study of Contemporary China.

Avery Goldstein is the David M. Knott Professor of Global Politics and International Relations in the Political Science Department, Director of the Center for the Study of Contemporary China, and Associate Director of the Christopher H. Browne Center for International Politics at the University of Pennsylvania. His research focuses on international relations, security studies, and Chinese politics.

Jacques deLisle is the Stephen A. Cozen Professor of Law & Professor of Political Science at the University of Pennsylvania, where he is also Deputy Director of the Center for the Study of Contemporary China, as well as Director of the Center for East Asian Studies. His research focuses on contemporary Chinese law and politics, the international status of Taiwan and cross-Strait relations, China’s engagement with the international order, legal and political issues in Hong Kong under Chinese rule, and U.S.-China relations.

Amy Gadsden is Executive Director for Penn Global, in which capacity she works with Penn’s schools and centers to develop and implement strategies to increase Penn’s global engagement both on campus and overseas. In 2016, she was named executive director of Penn China Initiatives to coordinate and develop University strategy and activity in China. In this role she works closely with the Penn Wharton China Center and directs the Penn China Research and Engagement Fund. Before coming to Penn, Dr. Gadsden spent more than a decade working in the foreign policy field with a focus on China. She served as a Country Director for the International Republican Institute and as a Special Advisor for China at the United States Department of State.

Music credit: "Salt" by Poppy Ackroyd, follow her at http://poppyackroyd.com

Special thanks to Nick Marziani

Next Episode

China's Economy & The 19th Party Congress – Damien Ma

China's economy is currently the world's second largest, by GDP, and is generally expected to overtake the U.S. economy within the next decade. In this episode, the Paulson Institute's Damien Ma, a leading expert on Chinese economic trends, discusses with Neysun Mahboubi the key features defining China's economy today, and some likely forecasts for the near future, with particular attention to the policy and personnel implications of the recent 19th Party Congress. This episode was recorded on December 1, 2017 at the Center for the Study of Contemporary China, in connection with the Center's post-Congress policy roundtable featuring Damien Ma and other experts.

Damien Ma is Fellow and Associate Director of the Think Tank at the Paulson Institute, focused on investment and policy programs and leads on various research projects and activities. He is co-author of the book, In Line Behind a Billion People: How Scarcity Will Define China's Ascent in the Next Decade; he is editor of The Economics of Air Pollution in China by Ma Jun, who was the chief economist of China's central bank; and he has written on the Chinese economy for many outlets including The Atlantic, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, The New Republic, and Slate. He is also co-creator of MacroPolo, a digital hub for cutting edge research on China's political economy.

Music credit: "Salt" by Poppy Ackroyd, follow her at http://poppyackroyd.com

Special thanks to Wendy Leutert and Nick Marziani