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After the Cold War, America's leaders hoped Russia and China could be integrated into the rules-based international order and might even become more like the West. By the late 2010s, their optimism was dead. In The End of Engagement, David M. McCourt traces the intense personal, professional, and policy struggles over China and Russia in U.S. foreign policy since 1989.

Drawing on 170 original interviews with America's China and Russia experts – from former policymakers and diplomats to prominent think tankers and academics – McCourt chronicles the rise and recent fall of "engagement" with Beijing and Moscow.

While there are numerous explanations for why America moved away from engagement with China and Russia in the last decade, McCourt shows that none consider how important foreign policy knowledge communities have been in impacting policy. Adopting a unique, sociological perspective, this book offers an intimate look into the world of America's national security experts as they have struggled to make sense of changes in China and Russia and the remaining question of what comes next.

The book not only tells the story of how national security experts in the US gradually changed their views on Russia and China. It also holds insights that are applicable to discussions of how to understand and approach both Russia and China in Europe and in Norway.

Following the book talk, Professor McCourt will be joined by a panel to discuss the book’s findings, whether the same dynamic can also be found here in Norway, and what this implies for the role of experts in shaping public debates on key foreign policy issues.

The event is hosted by The Center for Geopolitics and led by the head of the centre and NUPI Researcher Ole Jacob Sending. 

The event will be held at NUPI from 09:00 to 10:30 A.M. (CET). 

A light breakfast is served from 08:30. Please note that our new address is Rosenkrantz’ gate 22.

THE SEMINAR WILL BE STREAMED ON NUPI'S YOUTUBE CHANNEL: