Cling Conference 2025: A New Geopolitical Era and U.S.-China Competition

This full-day event features a series of expert panels discussing U.S.-China competition in today’s geopolitical landscape, China's response to the new era, the domestic drivers of U.S.-China competition, and the diplomacy of strategic competition.

This conference is co-sponsored by Georgetown University's Asian Studies Program in the School of Foreign Service and Initiative for U.S.-China Dialogue on Global Issues.

Schedule

8:30am - 9:00 a.m. | Opening Session

Welcoming Remarks by Dean Joel Hellman
Framing Remarks by Evan Medeiros

9:00 am - 10:30 a.m. | Panel 1: Today's Geopolitics and China

Moderator: Tom Wright, Brookings Institution
Robert Kagan, Brookings Institution
Nadege Roland, National Bureau of Asian Research
Charlie Kupchan, Georgetown University
Dingding Chen, Jinan University (virtual)

10:30 am - 12:00 p.m. | Panel 2: China's Response to The New Era: Taking Advantage or Floundering?

Moderator: Dennis Wilder, Georgetown University
Bonnie Glaser, German Marshall Fund of the United States
Bates Gill, National Bureau of Asian Research
Sergey Radchenko, John Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies
Da Wei, Tsinghua University (virtual)
Michael Schuman, Atlantic Council (virtual)

12:30 pm - 1:45p.m. | Lunch and Panel 3: The Domestic Sources and Implications of U.S.-China Strategic Competition

Moderator: Taylor Fravel, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Suisheng "Sam" Zhao, University of Denver
David Finkelstein, Center for Naval Analyses
Sheena Chestnut Greitens, University of Texas at Austin (virtual)
James Mulvenon, Pamir Consulting
Arthur Kroeber, Gavkal Dragonomics

1:45 pm - 2:45 p.m. | Keynote Discussion: The Diplomacy of Strategic Competition

Moderator: Evan Medeiros, Georgetown University
Keynote Guest: Jon Finer, former Deputy National Security Advisor

2:45 pm - 3:00 pm | Concluding Remarks

Evan Medeiros, Georgetown University