Exploring COVID-19 and United States-China Relations: Zheng Wang, Ph.D.'s Newest Publication Unveiled

The School of Diplomacy and International Relations announce the publication of a new book by Professor Zheng Wang, Ph.D. Wang is the director of the Center for Peace and Conflict Studies at Seton Hall and a member of the National Committee on United States-China Relations.

COVID-19 and U.S.-China Relations was published in July 2024. School of Diplomacy faculty member Yanzhong Huang, Ph.D., and Seton Hall Law Professor Margaret Lewis, J.D., contributed two chapters to this edited volume. COVID-19 and U.S.-China Relations, edited by Wang, offers a deep examination of the relationship between the two great powers during the COVID-19 pandemic. The book focuses on public health, trade and supply chain challenges, people-to-people connections, shifts in public opinion, rising nationalism, anti-Asian sentiments and strategic assessments, among other areas.

COVID-19 and U.S.-China Relations was a collaborative project involving a group of scholars from China and the U.S. during the pandemic. As Wang notes, "Our journey began when the Henry Luce Foundation approved an urgent needs grant in May 2020, which enabled the development of the 'Luce Dialogue on U.S.-China Relations During and After the Pandemic' project. Hosted by the Center for Peace and Conflict Studies at Seton Hall University, this timely initiative facilitated frank discussions and exchanges on various issues related to the pandemic between the policy communities of both nations."

Wang points out that, despite the challenges of the pandemic, he holds good memories of the numerous Zoom meetings between more than 60 scholars who participated in these online bilateral dialogues. He describes them as a silver lining during a difficult period. Throughout the planning of meetings, Wang specifically invited scholars from different backgrounds to gain balanced and objective perspectives.

His book, which is the first work on this topic, provides an objective analysis of the impacts of COVID-19 on U.S.-China relations. Wang defines the pandemic period of bilateral relations as "invisible battlegrounds" and considers the pandemic to be a turning point in bilateral relations. According to Wang, "To some extent, this pandemic was a warlike experience between these two countries. It was like a real war. In many ways, it caused an actual separation. Especially in the disinformation warfare period, countries experienced the decoupling."

COVID-19 and U.S.-China Relations provides several practical recommendations to countries hoping to reconcile their relationship. In this context, Wang hopes the key message readers take away from this scholarly joint effort is a better understanding of the pandemic. In addition to being a health crisis that took millions of lives, the pandemic also damaged bilateral relations between countries. Wang explains, "Particularly for the U.S.-China relations, the pandemic has caused unthinkable, far-reaching damages more than any other bilateral relations. We hope this book can provide fact-based reflections and assessments." Wang adds that he hopes the book will also provide lessons learned that can help prevent the same thing from happening in the future

Categories: Nation and World