On April 11th, IWP held a briefing exclusively for Chancellor’s Council members on how China will respond to the current situation with Russia invading Ukraine and how it relates to China’s relationship with Taiwan. IWP’s faculty panelists included: Interim Dean and former special assistant in the Office of the Secretary of Defense Dr. James Robbins, Former CIA NCS Deputy Director Prof. John Sano, and Former Chief of China Analysis at the U.S. State Department Office of Intelligence and Research Prof. John Tkacik.
11 Chancellor Council members were in attendance. Prof. Sano kicked off the briefing by focusing on the differences and similarities between the Russia/Ukraine scenario and the China/Taiwan issue and compared the political claims that Putin has on Ukraine with the ones that Xi has on Taiwan. Prof. Tkacik followed up by discussing the virtual alliance that Putin and Xi sealed on February 4, 2022 and shared some thoughts on lessons Xi may be learning from Putin’s unexpected difficulties, both on the battlefield against Ukraine’s stiff resistance and diplomatically against the steady buildup of EU and NATO pushback. Dr. Robbins concluded the briefing by looking at how the U.S. can assist Ukraine and Taiwan without adding more turmoil between the United States, Russia, and China.
An intriguing discussion followed, with Chancellor’s Council members asking questions about how the U.S. should be involved in the situation, a path to de-escalation, and more.
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