US Engagement with East Asia

The US has had a long, complex relationship with East Asia from the time the Sons of Liberty dumped 342 chests of Chinese tea into Boston Harbor. Today, America conducts more trade with East Asia and the Pacific than any other region in the world. Three out of the four nations that U.S. Intelligence Community identifies as the most important threats to national security are in East Asia (China, Russia, and North Korea), but so are some of America’s strongest military alliances (Japan and South Korea). Four out of America’s last seven wars have been fought in East Asia (Spanish-American War, World War II, Korean War, and Vietnam War), and an increasing number of experts are saying that East Asia is likely to be the site of America’s next war. This course will explore the 250 years of relations between the United States and East Asia nations. Specifically, we will try to understand the economic, cultural, diplomatic, and military interactions between the U.S. and areas like China, Russia, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, the Philippines, and Vietnam. This class combines lecture with discussion and focuses on reading and analysis of primary sources.