The United States' Role in the World's Great Power

Much has been made of the rise of China's economy, and some fear that China will surpass the United States as the world's largest economy in the coming years. Michael Beckley goes against the grain in his article "China's Century? Why America's Edge Will Endure" (International Security, Winter 2011/12), arguing that the size of a nation's economy doesn't necessarily dictate its global power, and that the United States is not in great danger because of China's economic developments. Beckley and Sean Lynn-Jones discuss this and the state of the Chinese economy as a whole when compared to the United States'. This conversation was recorded on December 14, 2011.