Shifrinson Discusses U.S. “Neo‐Primacy” Strategy on Cato Podcast
Joshua Shifrinson, Associate Professor of International Relations at the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University, appeared on the Cato Institute’s “Power Problems” podcast to discuss United States’ grand strategy and its approach towards China.
During his remarks, Shifrinson weighed in on a new critique of the restraint school in U.S. foreign policy debates and explains why the strategy proposed by some liberal internationalists to confront a rising China – a strategy he terms “neo‐primacy” – is bound to fail. He notes that there is a growing consensus among policymakers and academics that China is on its way to becoming a profound and generational competitor to the U.S. While recent U.S. presidents have each taken a different approach to it, Shifrinson argues that the country’s modern foreign policy has been shaped by a desire to reclaim its Cold War place as the top global power, a strategy which he argues conflates the threat of China and is counterproductive to U.S. interests.
The full podcast can be listened to below.
Joshua R. Itzkowitz Shifrinson is an Associate Professor at the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University, where his teaching and research interests focus on the intersection of international security and diplomatic history, particularly the rise and fall of great powers and the origins of grand strategy. His work has appeared with International Security, the Journal of Strategic Studies, Foreign Affairs, and other venues. Read more about Professor Shifrinson on his faculty profile.