The great wall and the empty fortress
Subtitle: China's search for security
By: by Andrew J. Nathan and Robert S. Ross.
Contributors: Ross, Robert S., 1954-
Publisher: W.W. Norton
Published: 1997
Place of publication: New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 268
Subjects: National security -- China.; China -- Foreign relations -- 1976-; Taiwan -- Foreign relations -- 1945-
Description: Today China is considered a threat by many in the United States and the rest of the world.

But the authors argue that those who subscribe to this alarmist view are mistaking the Great Wall for a symbol of strength, and falling for the deception of the Empty Fortress. Despite its sheer size, economic vitality, and drive to upgrade its military forces, China remains a vulnerable power, crowded on all sides by powerful rivals and potential foes. As it has throughout its history, China faces immense security problems, and their sources are at and within China's own borders.

China's foreign policy is calibrated to defend its territorial integrity against antagonists who are numerous, near, and strong. The authors trace the implications of this central point of China's relations with the United States, the Soviet Union and its successor states, and its regional rivals and partners. They address China's human-rights policy; its foreign economic policy; and its strategies in Taiwan, Tibet, and Hong Kong.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. [239]-254) and index.
Table of contents: title: Foreword
pagenum: xi; label: 1
title: China's Place in the World
pagenum: 3; label: 2
title: Legacies
pagenum: 19; label: 3
title: The Rise and Decline of the Russian Threat
pagenum: 35; label: 4
title: The American Puzzle
pagenum: 56; label: 5
title: Difficult Friends: Japan and the Two Koreas
pagenum: 82; label: 6
title: Neighbors to the South
pagenum: 100; label: 7
title: Policy-Making
pagenum: 123; label: 8
title: Military Power and Foreign Policy
pagenum: 137; label: 9
title: Dilemmas of Opening: Foreign Economic Relations
pagenum: 158; label: 10
title: Human Rights in Chinese Foreign Policy
pagenum: 178; label: 11
title: Territorial Integrity: Inner Asia, Taiwan, and Hong Kong
pagenum: 193; label: 12
title: The Foreign Policy of Taiwan
pagenum: 212; label: 13
title: Chinese Security and World Order
pagenum: 226; title: Notes
pagenum: 239; title: Index
pagenum: 255; title: Maps; label: I
title: China and Its Neighbors
pagenum: xviii-xix; label: II
title: Population Density, 1985
pagenum: 12; label: III
title: Chinese Claims in the South China Sea, 1995
pagenum: 114; label: IV
title: China and Inner Asia
pagenum: 195