The 2003 inauguration of the sixteenth congress of China was widely perceived as both potential political reform in China, as well as the continuation of peaceful negotiations with the United States (Sutter, pg.1). This has been an imperative transformation for many components of the relationship, especially considering the United States has pushed for China to transition from a communist government to a democratic form. Before the induction of the new congress, tensions had been high between the two countries for more than a decade. During the 1990’s the relationship between the countries had gone through strenuous times, mostly due to political issues that arose in communist countries (Sutter, pg.2). The fall of the USSR, although beneficial for trade in China, put pressure on them to stray away from their communist ways. The United States played a role in the fall of the USSR during the Cold War, and planned to do the same with China. Additionally, the events that transpired in Tiananmen square in 1989 continued to worsen the relations between the countries, as the authoritarian government of China continued to retard the human rights given to their citizens (Sutter, pg.2). The broadcasting of the Tiananmen square massacre, by both the Chinese and United States media, continued to strain the relationships, as the media from each country depicted the …show more content…
Similar to the views aforementioned, these views are based on the political ideologies and military existence of the United States in the Pacific. The United States urged countries around the world to adopt democratic forms of government, to the dismay of China. A main controversy between the two countries, was the United States support of Taiwan 's independence from China. The United States attempted to negotiate an agreement between the two countries, while China argues that the United States is intervening in private affairs, and suspect the United States is attempting to further distance the countries (Hao, pg.xxvii) Additionally, the United States military began to install bases in the Asian-Pacific, specifically in Japan and other surrounding countries (Sutter, pg.4). It was not until the latter portions of 2002, when China realized that on-going, and peaceful negotiations with the United States were imperative in order to solidify themselves as a world power. Likewise, the United States understand the necessity of such a relationship, especially “...with a wide range of international issues and crises involving the war on terrorism, Iraq, and North Korea…” were transpiring at the time (Sutter, pg.4). A strong alliance military alliance between the two countries will help ensure domestic safety for both