Global China: Assessing China’s growing role in the world and implications for U.S.-China strategic competition

China has emerged as a truly global actor, with its influence extending across virtually all key strategic and geographic domains. To help make sense of the implications of China’s growing role in the world and America’s response, on Tuesday, October 1, Brookings hosted Assistant Secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Randall Schriver for a keynote address and moderated discussion. At the Pentagon, Assistant Secretary Schriver serves at the forefront of shaping U.S. policy toward China.

The event launched the next tranche of papers released as part of the Brookings series on “Global China: Assessing China’s Growing Role in the World.” The analysis in this release focused on new domains of U.S.-China strategic competition as well as changes in China’s domestic institutions. This research will support the goal of the Global China initiative – to furnish policymakers and the public with a new empirical baseline for understanding China’s regional and global ambitions.

Bruce Jones, vice president and director of the Foreign Policy program at Brookings, kicked off the event with introductory remarks. Assistant Secretary of Defense Schriver then delivered a keynote speech, followed by a moderated conversation led by Ryan Hass, fellow and Michael H. Armacost Chair. After a short break, Tarun Chhabra, fellow with the Project on International Order and Strategy and Georgetown’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology, moderated a panel discussion with paper authors, Rush Doshi, Jamie Horsley, Cheng Li, and Audrye Wong. Both sessions concluded with questions from the audience.