Carter Center Publishes Report Using Cold War Analogy for Analyzing How Nuclear War Between the U.S. and China Can Be Averted

ATLANTA (April 4, 2024) — The Carter Center today published “Modernizing Sino-U.S. Confidence-Building Measures: Cold War Case Studies and Chinese Perspectives,” the latest installment in the Finding Firmer Ground report series examining how rising Sino-American tensions have prompted widespread discussion of a “New Cold War.”

Some analysts increasingly worry that flashpoints in the bilateral relationship could trigger conventional war that could escalate to the nuclear domain. This research utilizes the Cold War analogy as a starting point for analyzing how nuclear war between the U.S. and China can be averted.

This report is the fifth in the Carter Center’s Finding Firmer Ground report series, which explores how dialogue, conflict management, and collaboration between the U.S. and China can sustain peace and prosperity in East Asia. Previous reports have examined the role of civil society, the agricultural sector, educational exchange, and the role of high technology in U.S.-China relations.

This report is published by the Carter Center’s China Focus. The editors are Yawei Liu, senior advisor on China at The Carter Center, and Michael Cerny, program associate for the Center’s Peace Programs. 

The report is authored by Raven Witherspoon, Blakemore-Freeman fellow at Tsinghua's Inter-University Program for Chinese Language and pre-doctoral research fellow at Princeton University's Science and Global Security program; Jenna Wichterman, recent graduate of Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) and student at Tsinghua's Inter-University Program for Chinese Language Studies; Shivam Shankar Singh, author of “How to Win an Indian Election” (Penguin, 2019) and “The Art of Conjuring Alternate Realities: How Information Warfare Shapes Your World” (Harper Collins, 2021).

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Contact: In Atlanta, Maria Cartaya, maria.cartaya@cartercenter.org

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A not-for-profit, nongovernmental organization, The Carter Center has helped to improve life for people in over 80 countries by resolving conflicts; advancing democracy, human rights, and economic opportunity; preventing diseases; and improving mental health care. The Carter Center was founded in 1982 by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, in partnership with Emory University, to advance peace and health worldwide.