From 2019 to 2020 the Georgetown University Initiative for U.S.-China Dialogue on Global Issues hosted a podcast series that captures the profound and candid reflections of ambassadors, cabinet secretaries, and senior officials whose actions have shaped and are shaping the course of ties between the United States and China through the many twists and turns in what arguably is the most complex relationship in international diplomacy today.These former officials help explore the negotiating history of every facet of the issues under the initiative: peace and security, business and trade, economic and social development, climate change, and global health. At this critical juncture in history, where both sides are rethinking the trajectory of the bilateral relationship, a project of this nature and scope contributed to mutual understanding and provided ideas and lessons learned to successfully manage U.S.-China ties to advance peace and security in the rapidly evolving international order. Former Senior Fellow James Green, a longtime China expert who has worked for over two decades in and out of the U.S. government on China, was the host of this podcast series.The initiative is deeply grateful to people who provided generous support and advice to the podcast project. Please read more on the acknowledgements page.
Introducing Season Three: China's Global Footprint
This season of the U.S.-China Nexus looks at China’s expanding global footprint.
10/25/2023 • 5 minutes, 48 seconds
Introducing Season Two: Taking Stock of a Global China
This season of the U.S.-China Nexus looks at China’s expanding global footprint and the country’s outlook vis-à-vis different parts of the world.
10/5/2022 • 3 minutes, 20 seconds
Introducing the U.S.-China Nexus
The U.S.-China Nexus podcast features conversations with a scholar or policy expert on dynamics in China and Sino-American relations. This is an excerpt from our first episode.
2/15/2022 • 5 minutes, 4 seconds
Yang Guohua
Former Chinese Commerce Ministry official Yang Guohua talks with host James Green about intellectual property rights protections in China and as a point of friction in trade negotiations with the United States.
8/17/2020 • 40 minutes, 9 seconds
Gao Xiqing
Former China Investment Corporation president and securities regulator Gao Xiqing talks with host James Green about his journey from railroad construction worker to Duke Law School to Hong Kong and beyond.
8/10/2020 • 47 minutes, 59 seconds
Zhou Wenzhong
Zhou Wenzhong, former Chinese ambassador to the United States and former vice minister of foreign affairs, explains Beijing's positions on establishing and maintaining U.S.-China relations over four decades.
8/3/2020 • 35 minutes, 19 seconds
Robert Zoellick
Former United States trade representative and deputy secretary of state Robert Zoellick tells U.S.-China Dialogue Podcast host James Green about overseeing China's entry into the World Trade Organization in 2001 and coining the phrase "responsible stakeholder."
7/29/2020 • 1 hour, 5 minutes, 29 seconds
Paul Haenle
Former U.S. Army officer and National Security Council director Paul Haenle addresses North Korea's nuclear program in the Six Party Talks and China's military modernization with host James Green.
7/15/2020 • 57 minutes, 42 seconds
Ira Kasoff
Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce Ira Kasoff talks with host James Green about changes in China over the last four decades, commercial diplomacy, and comparisons between the Japanese economy of the 1980s and China today.
7/8/2020 • 57 minutes, 15 seconds
Robert Suettinger
Former senior intelligence analyst and National Security Council staffer Bob Suettinger discusses Taiwan, human rights, leadership struggles, and the role of the intelligence community with U.S.-China Dialogue Podcast host James Green.
5/11/2020 • 1 hour
Madeleine Albright
Madeleine Albright tells U.S.-China Dialogue Podcast host James Green about her decades working on China, including how building a working relationship at the UN with her Chinese counterpart was key to diffusing tensions when in 1999 U.S. missiles mistakenly hit the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade.
4/27/2020 • 49 minutes, 47 seconds
Dennis Wilder
Dennis Wilder explains to U.S.-China Dialogue Podcast host James Green watching the growth of the People's Liberation Army, analyzing Beijing policies from Hong Kong to Taiwan for the CIA, and handling presidential visits as the senior director for East Asia under President George W. Bush.
2/26/2020 • 1 hour, 20 minutes, 1 second
David Shear
Ambassador David Shear explains to U.S.-China Dialogue Podcast host James Green the U.S. military's response to Chinese assertiveness in the South China Sea, and his diplomatic career handling China.
2/5/2020 • 51 minutes, 49 seconds
Charlene Barshefsky
Former USTR Ambassador Charlene Barshefsky explains the WTO negotiation history to U.S.-China Dialogue Podcast host James Green as well as when China moved off the liberalization and reform track in 2006 and 2007.
1/29/2020 • 54 minutes, 58 seconds
Joseph DeTrani
Former senior CIA officer Joe DeTrani talks with host James Green about Chinese diplomacy in the six party talks and negotiating with North Korea on its dangerous nuclear weapons program.
1/10/2020 • 49 minutes, 59 seconds
Jim Keith
Ambassador Jim Keith discusses with U.S.-China Dialogue Podcast host James Green the inherent contradictions of Hong Kong as a separate territory, the importance of human rights in U.S. policy, and why China's place in the world remains unresolved.
11/25/2019 • 1 hour, 28 minutes, 54 seconds
Charles Freeman III
Charles Freeman III explains to U.S.-China Dialogue Podcast host James Green challenges within the Chinese system that drove trade negotiations during his time as assistant United States trade representative (USTR) for China in the early 2000s.
11/12/2019 • 43 minutes, 50 seconds
Winston Lord
Ambassador Winston Lord explains to U.S.-China Dialogue Podcast host James Green his unique experience negotiating with China: from secret negotiations in the 1970s to the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown to the link between trade and human rights in the 1990s.
10/23/2019 • 1 hour, 20 minutes, 10 seconds
Richard Bush
Richard Bush talks to U.S.-China Dialogue Podcast host James Green about the democratization process on Taiwan, the high-profile murder of a Taiwanese dissident on U.S. soil, and the effect on U.S. policy towards the People's Republic of China.
10/4/2019 • 1 hour, 7 minutes, 32 seconds
Gary Locke
Governor Gary Locke explains to U.S.-China Dialogue Podcast host James Green about dealing with Chinese officials high and low on pollution, market barriers, and human dignity as commerce secretary, then as U.S. ambassador.
9/20/2019 • 1 hour, 1 minute, 50 seconds
Roy Kamphausen
Retired Lt. Col. Roy Kamphausen explains to host James Green how the U.S. military has interacted with the Chinese People’s Liberation Army over the last three decades, including the accidental 1999 bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade.
9/10/2019 • 54 minutes
Todd Stern
Climate Special Envoy Todd Stern explains to U.S.-China Dialogue Podcast host James Green how an initially reluctant Chinese leadership began to engage the United States and change policies to limit emissions and pervasive pollution.
8/26/2019 • 1 hour, 5 minutes, 4 seconds
Susan Shirk
Professor Susan Shirk talks with U.S.-China Dialogue Podcast host James Green about her breakthrough meeting with Premier Zhou Enlai in 1971, her participation in President Jiang Zemin’s 1997 U.S. visit, and all the history in between and since.
7/26/2019 • 56 minutes, 57 seconds
Robert Einhorn
Arms control expert Bob Einhorn explains to host James Green how over the course of the 1990s, Chinese policies shifted to control dangerous technologies that threatened regional peace and stability.
7/18/2019 • 59 minutes, 21 seconds
Jeffrey Bader: Part Two
Longtime U.S. official Jeffrey Bader discusses with host James Green the real benefits to the United States of China's 2001 WTO accession, the strategy behind President Barack Obama's Asia policy, and how public messaging is critical to handling presidential summitry.
6/20/2019 • 1 hour, 6 minutes, 13 seconds
Jeffrey Bader: Part One
Jeffrey Bader explains to host James Green key events with China from the 1980s-1990s: the 1982 Communiqué under President Ronald Reagan, the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown, curbing Chinese nonproliferation behavior, the 1995-1996 Taiwan missile crisis, and President Bill Clinton's 1998 visit to China.
6/19/2019 • 58 minutes, 50 seconds
Doug Paal
Doug Paal discusses his experience as the senior director handling East Asia in the White House in the run-up to, during, and after the June 4, 1989 Tiananman Square massacre.
5/27/2019 • 55 minutes, 54 seconds
Wendy Cutler
Former acting Deputy United States Trade Representative (USTR) Wendy Cutler explains how the United States handled trade enforcement after China joined the World Trade Organization in 2001.
5/15/2019 • 53 minutes, 11 seconds
Joseph Prueher
Former United States Ambassador to China and retired Admiral Joseph Prueher discusses U.S.-China military ties and the 2001 collision of military aircraft that nearly brought the two countries to conflict.
5/6/2019 • 1 hour, 27 minutes, 12 seconds
Stapleton Roy
Stapleton Roy is interviewed for the U.S.-China Dialogue Podcast. Ambassador Roy discusses his lifetime of experiences dealing with China and offers advice to U.S. officials looking to get things done.
4/19/2019 • 1 hour, 11 minutes, 24 seconds
Susan Thornton
Susan Thornton is interviewed for the U.S.-China Dialogue Podcast. Thornton addresses Chinese cyber hacking, setting up the summit between the U.S. and Chinese presidents in Florida, and how career officials handle political transitions.
3/31/2019 • 1 hour, 2 minutes, 36 seconds
John Negroponte
John Negroponte is interviewed for the U.S.-China Dialogue Podcast. Ambassador Negroponte discusses his various U.S. diplomatic and leadership positions, and five decades of interacting with Chinese officials.
3/30/2019 • 41 minutes, 9 seconds
Michael Froman
Michael Froman is interviewed for the U.S.-China Dialogue Podcast. Ambassador Froman discusses summitry, trade negotiations, and how he shaped China's choices to align with the United States.
