On the evening of September 14, 2023, the Institute of International and Strategic Studies (IISS), Peking University (PKU) hosted lecture series under the 67th North Pavilion Seminar, titled "The Rise of China and American Security Policy." The lecture was delivered by Robert Ross, Professor of Political Science at Boston College and Researcher at the Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies at Harvard University. The event was chaired by Gui Yongtao, Vice President of IISS and Associate Dean of the School of International Studies (SIS), PKU.

Prof. Ross first critically reviewed three existing theories that explain China-U.S. relations. He argued that the following beliefs are incorrect: 1. there is mutual misunderstanding in China-U.S. relations; 2. the relations are deteriorating in a tit-for-tat spiral, and 3. the two countries are in a "security dilemma". He stated that due to the fact that the conflict between China and U.S. is based on a sufficiently correct mutual understanding U.S. pressure on China is solely due to China's rise, irrespective of China's specific actions; and the China-U.S. relations is not a "security dilemma". It is normal for China to react to the United States' containment of China. According to him, China-U.S. relation is a fundamental contradiction between major powers in nature, a matter of balancing power - with the United States seeking to hinder China's rise and solidify its own position as the world's foremost superpower.

Prof. Ross believes that the U.S.'s attempt to maintain hegemony is misguided, costly, and unlikely to succeed. Currently, the Chinese navy is growing and developing, while the U.S. Navy is in decline, and the tight U.S. fiscal budget is hard to improve amidst intense party struggles. He concluded that for the U.S., reducing expenditures is a wise policy; for China, the key is patience — continuing to focus on long-term economic development and ongoing rise.

During the Q&A session, Prof. Ross engaged in an in-depth exchange with the audience on various issues, including China-U.S. security risks, prerequisites for China-U.S. negotiations, anti-China statement in the U.S., considerations of the Biden administration's China policy, the impact of the 2024 U.S. elections, and a historical and forward-looking review of China-U.S. relations. (Contributor: Wang Runtan)

（Editor: Li Fangqi, Photographer: Zheng Peijie)