Coercion and Countermoves: The US-China Economic Rivalry

In a wide-ranging conversation, Dr. Elizabeth Economy and Dr. Melanie Hart discuss China’s economic coercion, its impact globally, and how the United States can most effectively respond. Hart draws on cases from her time at the State Department to illustrate how her team successfully combatted Chinese efforts to use the power of their market to force political alignment by other countries. She also stresses, however, that this is an ongoing battle. 

Hart also describes the Biden administration's framework for reducing dependence on Chinese critical minerals and semiconductors. She underscores the importance of investing in domestic manufacturing, partnering with other countries to build alternatives to Chinese suppliers, and working with allies to coordinate effective policy and early warning systems to address supply chain issues before they occur.

ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

Dr. Melanie Hart is the senior director of the Atlantic Council’s Global China Hub. She leads the Hub’s efforts to analyze Beijing’s actions and their global impacts using rigorous analysis and innovative data to generate actionable policy solutions, enabling the United States and its allies to respond effectively to common policy challenges on China. Prior joining the Council, Hart worked at the US Department of State, where she served as senior advisor for China in the Office of the Undersecretary for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment. In that role, Hart was instrumental in crafting strategies to reduce nation-state vulnerabilities to Chinese pressure. She developed the Department of State’s playbook for responding to Chinese economic coercion and led an internal unit that provided coercion-response support to multiple nations. Before joining the State Department, Hart served as senior fellow and director for China policy at the Center for American Progress, where her work helped shape domestic and global approaches to China on issues such as 5G policy, economic competition, energy and climate policy, and global governance.

Elizabeth Economy is the Hargrove Senior Fellow and co-director of the Program on the US, China, and the World at the Hoover Institution. From 2021-2023, she took leave from Hoover to serve as the senior advisor for China to the US secretary of commerce. Before joining Hoover, she was the C.V. Starr Senior Fellow and director, Asia Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations. She is the author of four books on China, including most recently The World According to China (Polity, 2021), and the co-editor of two volumes. She serves on the boards of the National Endowment for Democracy and the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations. She is a member of the Aspen Strategy Group and Council on Foreign Relations and serves as a book reviewer for Foreign Affairs.  

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• Melanie Hart on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/melanie-hart

ABOUT THE SERIES

China Considered with Elizabeth Economy is a Hoover Institution podcast series that features in-depth conversations with leading political figures, scholars, and activists from around the world. The series explores the ideas, events, and forces shaping China’s future and its global relationships, offering high-level expertise, clear-eyed analysis, and valuable insights to demystify China’s evolving dynamics and what they may mean for ordinary citizens and key decision makers across societies, governments, and the private sector.