On December 6, 2024, the Center for International Security and Strategy (CISS) at Tsinghua University hosted the sixth session of its “CISS Youth Observes the World” series, titled “Living U.S.-China Relations as a Third Party.” The event featured Koen Smeets, a member of the fifth cohort of CISS Youth and a Yenching Scholar at Peking University, as the main speaker. Dr. Shi Yan, an assistant researcher at CISS, provided commentary. The session was attended online by over 20 students from institutions such as Tsinghua University, Peking University, Renmin University of China, and the China Foreign Affairs University. Zhao Chenxi, a member of the fifth cohort of CISS Youth and a master’s student in Teaching Chinese to Speakers of Other Languages at Peking University, served as the host.
Koen Smeets began by sharing his interest in and research on US-China cultural exchanges. During his studies at Peking University’s Yenching Academy, he became fascinated with the history of student exchanges between the US and China in the early stages of normalization. He conducted interviews with early American exchange students to China and experts involved in U.S.-China exchanges during that period. Combining firsthand interviews and archival research, he completed a paper on cultural exchanges during the normalization period. He also initiated the U.S.-China Youth Exchange Conference, jointly organized by the CISS Youth at Tsinghua University and the Stanford Center at Peking University, actively participating in U.S.-China cultural exchange activities.
Koen then presented case studies of several non-governmental organizations, illustrating the historical context and vivid stories of cultural exchanges between the two countries from 1971 to 1978. Organizations such as the National Committee on United States-China Relations (NCUSCR) and the Committee on Scholarly Communication with the People’s Republic of China (CSCPRC), supported by the US government, played significant roles in promoting dialogue in areas like science, technology, and trade, thereby bridging the gap between the two nations. Additionally, universities like Stanford and corporations such as JPMorgan Chase actively expanded cooperation with China. China also made positive responses; for example, former Peking University President and renowned physicist Zhou Peiyuan made significant contributions to promoting the exchange program for sending Chinese students to the US.
Shifting focus to the present, Koen discussed the current state of U.S.-China cultural exchanges. He observed a significant decline in the number of American students studying in China post-pandemic. However, the number of US higher education institutions in China remains relatively stable, and short-term exchange programs for American students to China are on the rise. Considering the current challenges in U.S.-China relations, he emphasized the necessity of strengthening dialogue between individuals from both countries and encouraging more American youth to experience life and conduct field research in China.
Dr. Shi Yan, in her commentary, shared her experiences studying abroad in the US, highly praised Koen’s passion for researching U.S.-China cultural exchanges and his efforts to promote dialogue between the two countries, and highlighted the importance of strengthening people-to-people exchanges to maintain stable bilateral relations. She also noted that the accessibility of materials in the field of cultural exchanges makes it an excellent research topic for young scholars. She suggested further refining the study of exchanges in areas such as science, technology, trade, and humanities to better understand and promote the development of people-to-people exchanges between the two nations.
During the Q&A session, participants discussed topics such as how social media and a combination of online and offline methods can facilitate U.S.-China cultural exchanges. Koen acknowledged that while offline exchanges have irreplaceable advantages, online exchanges offer unique benefits in expanding influence and reducing costs, serving as important interactive platforms. He also proposed that promoting trilateral youth dialogues among China, the US, and Europe could be a direction for future exploration.
CISS Youth is a research-oriented exchange organization for young students and professionals in the field of international studies. Under the guidance of the Center for International Security and Strategy (CISS) at Tsinghua University, it operates independently, organizing various activities such as lectures, seminars, roundtables, and annual large-scale forums. CISS Youth aims to cultivate young students and scholars with a strategic vision and international perspective, enabling them to become active participants on the international stage. The “CISS Youth Observes the World” series serves as a platform for sharing experiences and exchanging insights from internships, overseas exchanges, and volunteer services, aligning with CISS Youth’s “Pre-career” positioning. This series provides more diverse, avant-garde, and practical perspectives for CISS Youth to observe and integrate into the world.