Asia Program

In the 1990s China embarked on a series of political reforms intended to increase, however modestly, political participation to reduce the abuse of power by local officials. Although there was initial progress, these reforms have largely stalled and, in many cases, gone backward. If there were sufficient incentives to inaugurate reform, why wasn't there enough momentum to continue and deepen them? This book approaches this question by looking at a number of promising reforms, understanding the incentives of officials at different levels, and the way the Chinese Communist Party operates at the local level. The short answer is that the sort of reforms necessary to make local officials more responsible to the citizens they govern cut too deeply into the organizational structure of the party.

What are the potentials of petroleum deposits in the East China Sea and Yellow Sea? Will cooperation or conflict prevail among countries that seek to develop these resources? This link includes a report by Selig S. Harrison, Woodrow Wilson Center senior scholar, as well as unabridged versions of all working papers submitted to two unprecedented workshops in Beijing co-sponsored by the Wilson Center and the China Institute of International Studies (an arm of the Chinese Foreign Ministry). Send an email to asia@wilsoncenter.org for a free copy or click on the attachment for a free PDF version.

In a September 17 op-ed in Pakistan's Dawn newspaper, program associate Michael Kugelman argues that foreign land acquisitions in Pakistan could exacerbate already-grave resource shortages and trigger political strife.

Washington and Beijing both consider good bilateral relations to be vital, but their growing strategic rivalry has the potential to evolve into mutual antagonism. In this new policy brief, published as the new leadership was announced in Beijing, China expert Stapleton Roy argues that the US should focus on regional engagement through multilateral organizations like ASEAN, as opposed to its military presence in the region.