Whether there is a unification deal that both the United States and China would prefer to the status quo is an open question. Both countries are reluctant to publically discuss such issues, for fear it would call into question their commitment to their allies. I am in the early stages of conducting a survey to measure public preferences over various unification options. Early results suggest that U.S. respondents support unification with a lesser U.S. role. Meanwhile, a public, unofficial conversation about how unification could be brought about may help sketch the rough outlines of a mutually acceptable deal.
Andrew Kydd is an associate professor at the University of Wisconsin’s department of political science. He regularly blogs at Political Violence at a Glance.
This is the fourth in a series of posts from the conference “Beyond the Pivot: Managing Asian Security Crises,” which was held in the Senate Hart Building on April 30, 2014, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. For more information, visit cpost.uchicago.edu.