Barack Obama took office describing himself as America’s first “Pacific President, and, as the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan wound down, his administration made Asia a top priority for U.S. foreign policy. The move has been dubbed “The Pivot,” and it has the potential to be one of the most enduring legacies of the Obama presidency.
With three key elements - diplomatic, economic, and military- the Pivot, or “rebalancing,” as administration officials now prefer to call it, is designed to bolster the U.S. position in the Asia-Pacific and enhance ties with key friends and allies. It has produced a flurry of high-level U.S. visits to the region - most notably the president'f first foreign trip since winning re-election, to Cambodia, Burma, and Thailand - a new trade initiative called the Trans-Pacific Partnership, and, most controversially, a series of moves to strengthen the American military posture.
Administration officials insist that the Pivot is not directed at China. But the policy took on added urgency and much greater visibility in the past two years, against the backdrop of a series of increasingly assertive Chinese foreign policy moves. Meanwhile, many in Beijing have complained that the policy is actually designed to contain and block the rise of China.
In a complex, volatile, and hugely important region, the Pivot is in fact a complex and still-evolving policy. This 22-minute film is based on interviews with leading officials, diplomats, and analysts, including Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, former U.S. Ambassador to China Stapleton Roy, former National Security Council Asia experts Jeffrey Bader and Kenneth Lieberthal, Chinese diplomat Jia Xiudong and others, as well as on-the-ground reporting. It offers a fascinating and detailed look at the Pivot and its implications for U.S. relations with Asia now- and in the future.
- See more at: http://china.usc.edu/pivot#sthash.zhErL2YL.dpuf