On the evening of March 23, 2023, the Institute of International and Strategic Studies (IISS), Peking University (PKU) held the 60th series lecture of the “North Pavilion Seminar”. Dr. Scott Kennedy, senior adviser and Trustee Chair in Chinese Business and Economics at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), gave a lecture titled “China's Political Economy and China-U.S. Relations”. The lecture was presided over by Gui Yongtao, Vice President of the IISS, PKU and Vice President of the School of International Studies (SIS), PKU.

Dr. Scott Kennedy first introduced the recently established U.S. House Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the U.S. and the Chinese Communist Party and the basic situation around the restrictions on Chinese companies in the U.S. Then, by sharing the research results of CSIS, he analyzed the reasons for misconceptions and concerns of the U.S. and other countries about China. On the one hand, the U.S. mistakenly believes that Chinese imports have led to the loss of U.S. jobs, but in fact there has been no serious unemployment in the U.S. in the two decades after China's accession to the WTO. On the other hand, the lack of transparency in Chinese corporate governance in recent years has led to a limited understanding of Chinese companies by foreign regulators, and an example is TikTok, a Chinese company being questioned in a U.S. congressional hearing. Dr. Kennedy concluded that the lack of understanding of corporate governance could undermine U.S.-China cooperation, harm innovation and employment, and even lead to continued friction and decoupling between the two countries.

During the Q&A session, Dr. Kennedy said that U.S. technology restrictions on China may work in the short term, but they may backfire in the long run, as Chinese technology will make huge breakthroughs. On the issue of “decoupling”, he argued that the two countries should “decouple precisely” to maintain cooperation in areas where both sides can gain economical and national security benefits. Finally, Dr. Kennedy called for more exchanges of visits and field research between the U.S. and China to improve understanding and reduce the “echo chamber” effect. (Contributed by Ma Li'ao)

Editor: Li Fangqi   Photographer: Zeng Chuyuan