By Adriana Aumen, College of Arts & Sciences
PULLMAN, Wash. – America’s economic, political and security relations with China will be examined in a free, public, two-part event featuring a live webcast discussion with former U.S. Secretary of State Henry A. Kissinger and an in-person address by a local expert on Tuesday, Oct. 18, at Washington State University.
The 70-city China Town Hall, “Local Connections, National Reflections,” will be hosted at WSU Pullman in Todd Hall 276, with Kissinger’s webcast at 4 p.m. followed at 5 p.m. with an in-person address by Richard Ellings, president of the National Bureau of Asian Research.
“China’s growing role as a global player and potential partner in many U.S. priorities ensures that Sino-American relations will directly affect citizens in both countries,” said Lydia Gerber, clinical associate professor of history and director of the WSU Asia Program, the local events sponsor.
“The webcast with Dr. Kissinger promises to assess the value of long-term engagement between our two nations,” she said. “Dr. Ellings’ lecture will present a more comprehensive understanding of the goals and methods of China’s leadership and their implications for our bilateral relationship. Both perspectives will help us identify productive ways of mutual exchange and cooperation in spite of political differences.”
Kissinger will draw on his years of experience as national security advisor and secretary of state to put U.S.-China relations in perspective and to present potential courses for future policy. His presentation will include a question-and-answer session with the nationwide audience, moderated by national committee president Stephen Orlins.
Ellings, an affiliate professor of international studies at the University of Washington, will present “China’s President Xi Jinping: Reformer, Emperor or Authoritarian Nationalist?” He will take questions from the audience at WSU.
China Town Hall is a national day of programming about China, offered by the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations. It has been a feature of the WSU College of Arts and Sciences’ interdisciplinary Asia Program for several years. For more information, including details about online viewing and a map of venues nationwide, visit http://go.wsu.edu/ChinaTownHall.
Contacts:
Lydia Gerber, WSU Asia Program, 509-335-7425, lgerber@wsu.edu
Adriana Aumen, WSU College of Arts & Sciences communications, 509-335-5671, adriana@wsu.edu
