| The question of how to manage the rise of China stands as one of the most significant grand strategy challenges for the 21st Century. The Harvard political scientist Graham T. Allison famously argued that war was nearly unavoidable in such situations when one emerging power threatens to overtake an existing superpower. This so-called "Thucydides Trap" explanation of the inevitability of major conflict between China and the United States has become popular among many grand strategy theorists. Our curated content for this week includes a must-read piece by Dr. Richard Hanania, pushing back against the Thucydides Trap narrative and arguing for the possibility and desirability of a more restrained and cooperative posture with China. Peter Harris' piece addresses the same arguments from the standpoint of recent developments in Hong Kong. Doug Bandow's piece in the American Conservative lends additional support to a more sober, restrained foreign policy approach with respect to Hong Kong. Readers interested in the intersection between grand strategy and the upcoming 2020 presidential election will profit from Colum Lynch's piece in Foreign Policy analyzing Joe Biden's foreign policy approach. To round off our curated content for the week, we recommend Daniel DePetris' piece for Defense One that pushes back against the narrative of American decline, particularly as a context within which to understand and promote a restrained foreign policy in the decades to come. Original Posts Peter Harris, RealClearPublicAffairs Perhaps it was never the case that the United States held meaningful sway over the People’s Republic of China (PRC). But if there was ever a time when Beijing was anxious to mollify ... Essential Reading Christopher Fettweis, Cato Institute Bottom Line: Deeply held beliefs that the world is dangerous and American power is indispensable for global peacekeeping prevent Americans from accepting the fact that they live in t... In the News Daniel DePetris, Defense One Andrew Bacevich, The Nation Daniel Larison, American Conservative Colum Lynch, Foreign Policy Daniel Larison, American Conservative Doug Bandow, Foreign Policy Joy Gordon, Responsible Statecraft Jack Detsch, Foreign Policy Doug Bandow, American Conservative James A. Russell, Responsible Statecraft Daniel DePetris, The Diplomat James Siebens & Charles Meire, Responsible Statecraft Daniel Davis, The Hill Christopher Preble, Cato Institute Joshua Rovner, War on the Rocks Quincy Institute In May 2018, Trump left the Iran nuclear deal and adopted a policy called Maximum Pressure — sanctions on steroids — ostensibly to force Iran to renegotiate a new deal with Trump. It was also promised to roll back Iran’s influence in the region, secure the release of all American prisoners in Iran, and the complete elimination of Iran’s enrichment activities. Two years later, Iran has increased its nuclear enrichment, the U.S. and Iran have been minutes away from war on at least two occasions and Iran’s influence in the region is — according to the Trump administration itself — more problematic than before. Power Problems Eric Gomez and Christopher Preble join Emma Ashford to discuss their new paper, “Building a Modern Military,” and how COVID-19 will change the U.S. military. | 
