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Obama and China's Rise: An Insider's Account of America's Asia Strategy . Jeffrey A. Bader . Washington, DC : Bookings Institution Press , 2012. xix + 171 pp. $26.95 ISBN 978-0-8157-2242-7
Book Reviews
Diplomacy, at its best, can peacefully mediate contentious relations among states. In this book, we see diplomacy in action: its potential, challenges and transformations in the information age. As the senior director for East Asian affairs on the National Security Council from January 2009 until April 2011, Jeffrey Bader has written an accessible and insightful account of US diplomacy toward China during this critical period.
Bader's faith in diplomacy's potential is that of a veteran diplomat and seasoned China-hand. He responds calmly to China's 2009-2010 "incautious and gratuitously assertive diplomacy and actions," drolly noting "those of us who had decades of experience with China could not recall ever seeing it quietly roll over in the face of foreign demands" (p. 80). He suggests that the Obama administration's firm response fostered a "sober reflection on whether public belligerence really served China's interests" (pp. 105-106). By 2011, Bader's "overall picture" is that of a "strengthened US position in the region, and more constructive Chinese behavior" as well as a "stable...