This week on Sinica, UPenn legal scholar Neysun Mahboubi talks about his recently-concluded trip back to China — his first time back since the outbreak of the pandemic. Neysun talks about the importance of in-person, face-to-face scholarly exchange, and despite concerns over the more restrictive political space in China, sounds a hopeful note about what the restoration of in-person exchange might mean for the future of U.S.-China relations.

05:02 – Neysun Mahboubi’s YouTube-based initiatives on the U.S.-China relations

10:15 – The changes in Beijing in recent years

13:49 – The recently observed growing reticence of Chinese people to speak up, and the third-rail topics

16:50 – The effect of Chinese administrative handling of the pandemic on people’s trust

25:01 – What is the view of Chinese liberal intellectuals on the role of the U.S. in the worsening U.S.-China relations?

28:29 – Have the Biden administration’s recent efforts to thaw the U.S.-China relations been well received by the Chinese side?

32:48 – The future of scholarly exchanges from China and the U.S. in light of the pandemic and escalating political tensions

40:13 – The Ukraine War from the perspective of Chinese intellectuals

A complete transcript of this podcast is available at TheChinaProject.com.

Recommendations:

Neysun: To Live, directed by Zhang Yimou

Kaiser: The Status Kuo, an American politics substack by Jay Kuo

Mentioned: 

To Live: A Novel by Yu Hua (translated by Michael Berry)

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