By Elizabeth C. Economy
Is the Obama administration really weak on China expertise?
Alarm bells are ringing yet again over the apparent dearth of expertise and interest in China within the Obama administration. This is a problem I have been tempted to write about on a number of occasions over the past year or two. I have not done so because I do not think that there is a problem. Still, people keep writing articles suggesting that such a problem exists, so perhaps it is worth taking a bit of time to assess the claim.The problem, as several writers and analysts have identified it, is that the current constellation of senior U.S. officials—as opposed to those who served in the first term, or term and a half, of the Obama administration—lacks interest in, and expertise on, China.The argument is roughly as follows:
- Treasury Secretary Geithner studied Chinese in college and spent two summers in Beijing; Treasury Secretary Lew did not.
- Ambassador Huntsman is extremely knowledgeable about China, and Ambassador Locke is Chinese-American; Ambassador Baucus is neither.
- Secretary Clinton articulated a masterful vision for U.S. policy toward Asia and China in the form of the pivot; Secretary Kerry did not.
- National Security Advisor Donilon was interested in China; National Security Advisor Rice is not.
- There are no senior China experts in the relevant U.S. bureaucracies.
Read the full story at The Diplomat