A Contest for Supremacy: China, America, and the Struggle for Mastery in Asia [Hardcover]

Aaron L. Friedberg (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 15, 2011

An explosive examination of the fast-escalating Sino-American struggle for geopolitical predominance.

There may be no denying China's growing economic strength, but its impact on the global balance of power remains hotly contested. Political scientist Aaron L. Friedberg argues that our nation's leaders are failing to act expeditiously enough to counter China's growing strength. He explains how the United States and China define their goals and reveals the strategies each is now employing to achieve its ends. Friedberg demonstrates in this provocative book that the ultimate aim of Chinese policymakers is to "win without fighting," displacing the United States as the leading power in Asia while avoiding direct confrontation. The United States, on the other hand, sends misleading signals about our commitments and resolve, putting us at risk for a war that might otherwise have been avoided. A much-needed wake-up call to U.S. leaders and policymakers, A Contest for Supremacy is a compelling interpretation of a rivalry that will go far to determine the shape of the twenty-first century.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“A stern, carefully worded warning about why the United States should be more wary of China’s meteoric rise…. In a meticulously organized study…Friedberg lays out the various ongoing arguments for containment or alignment, as well as what he extrapolates Chinese intentions to be…. An important cry to heed: China’s peaceful rise cannot disguise its aim to become ‘world number one.’” (Kirkus )

“…Friedberg’s alarm soundings have authority. China’s new wealth allows it to apply ‘soft power’ in East Asia and elsewhere, its deployment of modern technology has counteracted American influence in the region, and its economy continues to thrive even as America bogs down in two wars. Friedberg’s responses…help keep this important issue front and center.” (Alan Moores - Booklist )

“His book is tough-minded and sometimes pessimistic but there is nothing hysterical about it. On the contrary, it is sober and well-informed… A Contest for Supremacy offers a careful and compelling examination of the US-Chinese relationship from a number of angles.” (Financial Times )

“[Friedberg’s] is the most thoughtful and informative of a stream of China-threat books that have come out since the mid-1990s.” (Andrew J. Nathan - Foreign Affairs )

“A Contest for Supremacy is a rigorous and comprehensive account of the state of U.S.-China strategic relations, and by far, the most thoughtful and serious book to date on the topic.” (Weekly Standard )

“Friedberg has in fact written a judicious, measured assessment of the stakes between China and the United States over the next several decades…. He accurately characterizes the ‘willful, blinkered optimism’ about the direction of Sino-American relations ‘in the academic and business communities and across significant portions of the U.S. government.'

….[Friedberg] has relentlessly exposed the intellectual and strategic weaknesses and errors of the prevailing mindset in Washington. For this, in fact, he deserves great credit.” (John R. Bolton - Hong Kong Economic Journal )

About the Author

Aaron L. Friedberg is a professor of politics and international affairs at Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School and a former deputy assistant for national security affairs in the Office of the Vice President. He lives in Princeton, New Jersey.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company (August 15, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0393068285
• ISBN-13: 978-0393068283
• Product Dimensions: 6.5 x 1.3 x 9.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #182,754 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Hawk in full flight September 19, 2011

By Hande Z

Format:Hardcover

Friedberg refers to the view that to "treat China as an enemy and it will become one" and issues his counter-warning that this view leads to "a lack of tolerance for dissent" and that ultimately will make America less capable of responding to China in a "measured and timely way." This sets the tone and trajectory of this book. Friedberg indeed sees China not merely as a competitor but one serious enough to be a threat to America in trade and influence. The fear that China's military might will also increase is only incidental to helping it to establish the commercial and political influence that America has. Friedberg maintains that America should not relinquish this influence. He warns against transferring technology to China that will end up in military use; he accuses China of assisting countries like Pakistan, Iran, and North Korea in acquiring nuclear weapons. He asserts that "throughout history, there has been a strong correlation between the rapid growth of a state's wealth and potential power, the geographic scope of its interests, the intensity and variety of the perceived threats to those interests, and the desire to expand military capabilities and exert influence in order to defend them." That is indeed correct. That correlation applies, of course, to America as well.

Friedberg notes and seems to agree with Wang Jisi that "U.S. grand strategy is based on the very ideology and values it promotes." Friedberg adds to that by reciting the view that America "cannot help but assert that its values are universal nor can it help itself from 'applying them to judge right and wrong in international relations and the internal affairs of other countries.'" He thus sees China not only as a nation risng in economic power, but one that threatens America in every way.... He says that "[u]nless China stops growing, or embraces American-style democracy" "Washington's" mistrust and hostility to China will not change. He also cites China's analysts' fears of America, its actions and motives. Hence, he concludes that the tensions between "a rising power" and "an established hegemonist" cannot easily be extinguished.

Friedberg's book is very interesting, well-thought, and clearly written. It is also an alarmist book - it will alarm both Americans and Chinese, and thus it may be wise to study both countries' political history a little more deeply. Tang Jiaxuan's recent book, "Heavy Storm & Gentle Breeze" may be the next useful read. Will the world be better if there were just America or China, or any country as the sole superpower? Fareed Zakaria's second edition "The Post American World" is another important book in the context of the struggle for supremacy for it shows that it is not only China that America needs to watch. In any event, one question lingers when one thinks about the supremacy, and the influence of American democratic model: Isn't the doctrine of checks and balances a fundamental part of America's constitutional structure? Read more ›

25 of 32 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Some Areas of Disagreement but a Good Book August 11, 2011

By Tiger CK

Format:Hardcover

In his new book, Aaron Friedberg looks at the present and future of Sino-American relations. Friedberg is far less sanguine about the relationship than many other academics are. He criticizes what he considers the mainstream view, which trusts that China will eventually liberalize and argues instead that there is a real possibility of an increasingly dangerous economic and strategic competition between what will undoubtedly be the two most important powers of the twenty-first century. The current economic situation in the United States has increased the likelihood of such competition, according to Friedberg, because it has increased China's self-confidence while weakening American credibility.

There are some areas where I strongly agreed with what Dr. Friedberg had to say but there are others where I believed that he was too alarmist about the threat of China. Friedberg argues in the book that it is time for a serious national debate about China policy. On this point, he is absolutely right. He argues that during the last several years, Washington has focused on the Middle East, North Korea and other issues that demand immediate attention but will not be as important in the grand scheme of world politics as the U.S.-China relationship. Policy makers have also plaid down the possibility of conflict with China because of the perceived need for Beijing's cooperation in the war against terror. Friedberg makes a much-needed call for Washington to increase its focus on the China issue.

I am less persuaded by Friedberg's insistence on the likelihood that China will emerge as a strategic threat.... Using translated Chinese documents, Friedberg contends that China's current strategy is to avoid confrontation with the United States while hiding its capabilities and "advancing incrementally" until it is the dominant power in the Asia-Pacific region. To his credit, he is careful on this issue. He does acknowledge that there is a possibility that China will liberalize and claims that if he does, the threat that it poses to the United States would be diminished. But he also raises the prospect of a China that remains authoritarian and seeks to make its influence felt in Asia and around the world. If China takes this route, it is true that it would certainly threaten some of our interests. I agree with him that a more powerful China would increase its influence over the South China Sea and be able to bring Taiwan to terms. Nevertheless, it would be far more difficult for China to threaten and project its power onto America's more significant economic and strategic partners in the Asian region such as India, South Korea and Japan. These nations all have significant economic and military capabilities in their own right and could probably contain China to some degree, even without American assistance. In discussing the balance of power, Friedberg should have taken the capacities of our allies into account. I also think Friedberg exaggerates the degree to which China wants to see American influence removed from the Asian region. China has welcomed the United States as a stabilizing and restraining force in Japan and Korea in the past and will likely continue to do so for the foreseeable future. Even if China remains authoritarian, it will still have many common interests with the United States in Asia.

There are some places where the author has a tendency to give too much background information. In the opening chapter, for instance, he talks about the shift in the global balance of economic power. He did not need to go all the way back to the Middle Ages to do this, however, and much of his historical analysis here feels superficial and is not particularly new or interesting. Friedman's book could also have benefitted from a chapter on economic competition. He only mentions Africa, which is becoming another site of Sino-American conflict a handful of times.

While I have my disagreements with this author, however, there are places where he offers excellent analysis. His substantive chapters on recent Chinese and American policy, the balance of influence and the balance of power are filled with keen insight. He builds on the work of other recent scholars such as Joshua Kurlantzik (The Charm Offensive) to demonstrate how China has tried to improve its image in Asia and augment its soft power, sometimes at the expense of the United States. He also has very good detailed information on the comparative military strengths of the United States and China, showing how the PRC can offset current American advantages with the technologies that it is developing. As an academic and former policymaker, Friedberg does a great job of framing the issues in ways that will be useful both in Washington and in the university. Overall, while I believe that Friedberg sometimes exaggerates the threat posed by China he deserved credit for writing an interesting book that challenges prevailing wisdom. Read more ›

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Uneven work November 10, 2011

By Frederick Chen

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

Professor Fridberg makes a case that China seeks to eject the US from East Asia. He seems to claim that most establishment figures have been seeing the relationship in rose colored lenses. He believes that the grand wager made by the US, that economic development in China will integrate it so closely with the world and develop pluralistic forces, has been a failure. He believes the US needs to emphasize the containment in contain/engagement. He believes war would ensue if the US did not contain China. All well and good. But he throws in unattributed information about millions of Chinese immigrants in Russia, and makes one believe that there is a dastardly Chinese plan to invade Burma by corrupting its officials, when it could just as easily be explained by natural human instincts to migrate to places with more opportunity.

And he never answers the question of whether the world can afford a cold/hot war between its two largest economies, each nuclear armed. A small disruption like 9/11 brought the US near to recession. An act of war would choke off world trade by raising insurance rates. It would push millions out of work. As Churchill said, it is better to jaw, jaw than to war, war.

9 of 12 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Is China a threat to the United States? December 29, 2011

By Erez Davidi

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

In this book, Aaron Friedberg lays down the argument that China might become a serious threat to U.S. "interests" in the Pacific region mainly because of its increasing military expansion and its authoritarian regime. The author starts by analyzing the current status of China's regime and where it might be heading to. Friedberg sees several different scenarios that could develop in the coming years/decades.

These are the main ones: First, because of various reasons, China's regime might start tilting toward Democracy, and therefore, it will embrace values more in line with America's values, hence it will pose less of a threat. Furthermore, history shows that Democracies do not tend to go to war with each other.

Second, since China is suffering from a big problem of an aging society and from a huge problem of misallocation of resources (more on this topic of China's fragile banking system can be read in Red Capitalism: The Fragile Financial Foundation of China's Extraordinary Rise), China might start to considerably slow down. If such a scenario plays out, China might face social unrest which will force the Chinese government to devote more resources to domestic security instead of to their military. Moreover, the Chinese government will be less inclined to be aggressive if they will feel that their regime is hanging by a thread. In an environment of slower growth, the Chinese government will have less capital to devote to military expansion. Friedberg, correctly points out that if the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) will be pushed to the corner it might, out of desperation, engage in some form of a military attack in order to unite the Chinese people behind the party....

Lastly, in Friedberg eyes, the worst scenario will be that China doesn't slow down nor does it suffer from social unrest nor show any signs of embracing Democracy. In this scenario, China's fierce military expansion will continue and eventually, if nothing will be done by the U.S., will hurt U.S. interests.

I was highly impressed by the great research and the very balanced approach of Friedberg. However, I felt that this book left a few questions unanswered: (1) Friedberg does not define what exactly U.S. interests are, (2) Why is it so vital for the U.S. to protect Taiwan, Japan and South Korea, (3) Even if China gains control of the Pacific region, how will it affect the U.S.?, and (5) Can the U.S. and the world afford another arms race similar to the one that happened during the Cold War, especially now when the western world economics are in such a fragile condition?

Friedberg keeps pointing out that China's huge military expansion is a threat to the United States. However, he fails to address the question of how China might view the United States. Taking into account that the United States' defense budget is about six times larger than China's and that China is surrounded by U.S. bases (Japan, South Korea and others), it seems quite reasonable that China will want to protect itself. Read more ›