Uncertainty: The Indo-Pacific Region and American Foreign Policy

In the 50 years since President Nixon’s opening to China, the Indo-Pacific has become the focal point of world affairs and American foreign policy due to the region’s burgeoning political, economic, military, and cultural influence. Its member countries occupy key nodes in the networks and partnerships binding the international order together. The presence of China and India, long-standing American allies such as Australia, Japan, and Korea, and emerging states in Southeast Asia, as well as the preponderance of flashpoints and issues of mutual interest create complex considerations for American policymakers and scholars. Any formation of future American strategy and policy toward the Indo-Pacific must address an expansive array of challenges: alliances, climate, health, migration, security, trade, and more.

In recognition of this, the AWC is convening an interdisciplinary conference to examine the myriad issues that illustrate the significance of the Indo-Pacific region to American foreign policy. This conference seeks to examine the causes, connections, implications, and lessons that will impact the work of scholars and policymakers as America engages the Indo-Pacific in the 21st century. 

 

Uncertainty: The Indo-Pacific Region and American Foreign Policy

America in the World Consortium (AWC) Research Conference

Hosted by the AWC Fellows at the Clements Center for National Security

 

8:00 – 8:45 am   Arrival, Registration, Breakfast, and Coffee

Coffee / tea / light breakfast available

8:45 – 9:00 am   Welcome Remarks: Zoltán Fehér, AWC Fellow, Clements Center for National Security, UT-Austin 

9:00 – 9:30 am   Distinguished Speaker: General Vincent K. Brooks, Distinguished National Security Fellow, Clements Center for National Security, UT-Austin

9:30 – 11:00 am   Panel One: Security – Preparation, Cooperation, and Competition

   Chair: Rosella Cappella Zielinski, Boston University  

   Seamus Daniels, Center for Strategic and International Studies

   Charlotte Hulme, United States Military Academy at West Point

   Tommy Jamison, Naval Postgraduate School

   Esther Tamara, Foreign Policy Community of Indonesia

11:00 am – 11:15 am    Coffee Break

11:15 am – 12:45 pm  Panel Two : Reflections on U.S. Foreign Policy and Indo-Pacific Security 50 Years After the Nixon-Kissinger Opening to China 

   Chair: Zoltán Fehér, AWC Fellow, The University of Texas at Austin  

   John Bolton, Johns Hopkins University

   Eun Jo, Cornell University

   Shuxian Luo, Brookings Institution

   Jaehan Park, Texas A&M University

12:45 – 1:45 pm      Keynote Speaker and Luncheon: Michael Auslin, Payson J. Treat Distinguished Research Fellow in Contemporary Asia, Hoover Institution                           

Buffet lunch provided for participants and registered guests

1:45 – 3:15 pm    Panel Three: Perspectives on Transpacific Economics, Trade, and Technology 

   Chair: William Chou, AWC Fellow, The University of Texas at Austin  

   John Bowlus, Kadir Has University

   Jonathan Canfield, Johns Hopkins University

   James Lee, University of California at San Diego

   June Park, Princeton University 

3:15 – 3:30 pm    Coffee Break

3:30 – 5:00 pm   Panel Four: America and the Indo-Pacific – Historical Lessons

   Chair: Joseph A. Ledford, AWC Fellow, The University of Texas at Austin  

   Jeffrey Crean, Tyler Junior College

   Nathaniel Moir, Harvard University

   Katrina Ponti, University of Rochester

5:00 – 5:30 pm    Closing Remarks: Sheena Chestnut Greitens, Director of Asia Policy Program, UT-Austin