In this new episode of The Pacific Dialogue, James Chau interviewed Prof. ZHU Feng of the Nanjing University and Prof. Robert Ross of Harvard University and asked the guests a host of questions on the current state of U.S.-China relations and what the relationship might look like under a new Biden administration.

The interview came at a sensitive time as the current U.S. administration is turning more confrontational towards China that as Prof. Ross described would box in the next U.S. government. “The combination of President Trump and Secretary of State Pompeo all the way through January 20th makes us nervous,” declared Ross. Zhu agreed, saying “we don't know how far Trump will still "punch" China, and get our relations to crash.”

Prof. Ross and Prof. Zhu were positive about the new national security and foreign policy team Biden has recently unveiled. Ross concluded that a Biden administration “will restore dialogue and restore experts, restore function and cooperation, [and] compartmentalize relations.” “ They know how to make a delicate balance between competition and cooperation. So I'm totally looking forward to that,” Zhu added.

Prof. Ross teaches political science at Boston College and he is also on faculty of the Fairbank Center of Chinese Studies at Harvard. At Nanjing University, Prof. Zhu teaches international relations and leads the Collaborative Innovation Center of South China Sea Studies.