POL 37 — China and Russia: The Politics of "Revisionism" and Global Power
Quarter: Spring
Instructor(s): Joseph Torigian
Date(s): Apr 17—May 22
Class Recording Available: Yes
Class Meeting Day: Thursdays
Grade Restriction: No letter grade
Class Meeting Time: 5:30—7:20 pm (PT)
Tuition: $405
Refund Deadline: Apr 19
Unit(s): 1
Status: Registration opens Feb 24, 8:30 am (PT)
Quarter: Spring
Day: Thursdays
Duration: 6 weeks
Time: 5:30—7:20 pm (PT)
Date(s): Apr 17—May 22
Unit(s): 1
Tuition: $405
Refund Deadline: Apr 19
Instructor(s): Joseph Torigian
Grade Restriction: No letter grade
Recording Available: Yes
Status: Registration opens Feb 24, 8:30 am (PT)
After years of focusing on terrorism and the Middle East, US foreign policy has shifted to address two major global actors—China and Russia—labeled "revisionist powers" by former Secretary of Defense James Mattis. This course explores how political elites in Beijing and Moscow have sought to defend their regimes and challenge other great powers over the last century. We will compare how these two nations have pursued different paths to security and influence, from revolutionary upheavals to modern economic reforms. By applying political science theories and analyzing key moments like China’s 1980s reforms and Russia’s resurgence under Putin, students will examine how and why these countries are reshaping international politics today. We will explore the history and leadership of these two nations and critically assess whether the United States should be concerned about growing ties between Beijing and Moscow as we deepen our understanding of “great power” politics.
JOSEPH TORIGIAN
Research Fellow, Hoover Institution, Stanford
Joseph Torigian is an associate professor at the School of International Service at American University, a Global Fellow in the Wilson Center’s History and Public Policy Program, and a center associate of the Lieberthal-Rogel Center for Chinese Studies at the University of Michigan. He was a predoctoral and postdoctoral fellow at Stanford’s Center for International Security and Cooperation, an IREX scholar affiliated with the Higher School of Economics in Moscow, and a Fulbright Scholar at Fudan University in Shanghai. He is the author of Prestige, Manipulation, and Coercion: Elite Power Struggles in the Soviet Union and China after Stalin and Mao. Textbooks for this course:
There are no required textbooks; however, some fee-based online readings may be assigned.