"India, Pakistan and China: Asia's Rising Powers," a presentation Thursday about American diplomatic perspectives on the changing relationships between the United States and the three Asian countries amidst emerging economic growth, featured lectures from Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of South and Central Asian Affairs Steve Mann and Cyrus R. Vance Fellow in Diplomatic Studies Evans Rever.
According to Kenneth Yalowitz, moderator of the event and director of the John Sloan Dickey Center for International Understanding, media shifts to other current events has taken away focus away from the situations in Asia.
"Obviously, we're all looking at headlines today on Iraq, Iran, the Middle East," Yalowitz said. "It's easy to forget that we're looking at tectonic shifts in other places. India, China and Pakistan are nuclear powers already. But dealing with these powers is a very significant challenge to the United States."
Mann spoke in depth about India's economic progression stemming from the reforms initiated in the 1990s.
"It is the United States' relationship with India that has changed most radically in the past 10 years," Mann said. "India really is showing powerful growth and is going to be a top-tier economic power."
Following Mann, Rever discussed the new relationship the United States and China now share and the ways it might change.
"The bottom line in this relationship is that the U.S. and China are bound together in an increasingly complex relationship," Rever said. "It is evolving in a direction I would describe as uncertain."
In recent times senior American government officials have directed their attention to the Middle East, and as a result Chinese-American relations have drifted, according to Rever. He stressed that it is of great importance for the United States to develop a clear policy towards China, based on mutual transparency and cooperation, while protecting its best interests.
"A coherent approach with a broad political backing among the American people is necessary to get our approach right," Rever said about China.
While Rever stressed that he represented only his own views, Mann made clear he spoke as a representative of the American foreign service.
Once both speakers concluded their presentations, they invited audience members to ask questions.
Response to the event was positive, as audience members appeared engaged.
"I was really impressed with the level of discourse. They tried to use simple language, but they were discussing complex things," Alex Kell '10 said. "I'm impressed Dartmouth is able to attract such high-level officials."
The Dickey Center sponsored the discussion, which was held in Filene Auditorium.
