This week, host Elisa welcomes on Jude Blanchette, China expert at The Center for Strategic and International Studies. With a background in China's political history and the influence of the CCP, Jude unpacks China's latest political moves, how we got to the present dynamic, and what we might expect from China in the future. Beginning with Taiwan, why is the island so important to both China and the U.S.? What are China's current goals with Taiwan, and what threats does this pose to us? And looking to the West, how has Xi's relationship with Putin and China's faux neutrality towards the war in Ukraine changed the global superpower dynamic?

Jude Blanchette is Freeman Chair in China Studies at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS):https://www.csis.org/people/jude-blanchette

References:

H.R. 2479 Taiwan Relations Act:https://www.congress.gov/bill/96th-congress/house-bill/2479

C.H.Wong, K.Zhai, J.T. Areddy. “China's Xi Jinping Takes Rare Direct Aim at U.S. in Speech.” The Wall Street Journal, Dow Jones & Company, 6 Mar. 2023:https://drive.google.com/file/d/1mcTVSYfJaf6qNGueGrL6A4x0GDEUw78T/view?usp=share_link

Person, and Laurie Chen. “Factbox: What Is China's New Government Restructuring Plan?” Reuters, Thomson Reuters, 8 Mar. 2023:https://drive.google.com/file/d/14CDtz9Xk-oHXbg-6s1qufEzokEHNOljF/view?usp=share_link