Professor and Chair of Political Science and International Affairs Elizabeth Freund Larus

Elizabeth Freund Larus, Chairman of the Department of Political Science and International Affairs virtually participated in the Roundtable “COVID-19 Pandemic as a Challenge to Democracy and Human Rights in China and Taiwan” at Jagellonian University, Krakow, on November 29, 2021. Professor Larus commented that the U.S. media has grown more critical of China since the advent of COVID-19 and more favorably disposed to Taiwan, shaping the message that the media convey. She also indicated that COVID-19 reinforced autocratic rule in China and democracy in Taiwan, and that COVID-19  weakened China’s soft power, which had been waning before the outbreak of the pandemic.

Professor and Chair of Political Science and International Affairs Elizabeth Freund Larus

PSIA Chairman Elizabeth Freund Larus recently commented on Vietnam News on the Biden administration’s approach to North Korea. She indicated that President Biden appears to have accepted the Singapore framework agreed on at the 2018 Trump-Kim meeting, which called for parallel progress toward the goals of complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, peace and security on the peninsula, improved U.S.-North Korean relations, and the repatriation of American prisoners of war and missing in action remains from the Korean War. Professor Larus’ comments begin at 11 minutes into the program, accessible at https://vnews.gov.vn/video/the-gioi-360-do-ngay-23-10-2021-15856.htm

Dr. Larus also commented on Newsy’s November 9 “Morning Rush” broadcast that China’s mock-up of the U.S. warships indicates that China is deadly serious about Taiwan and the South China Sea. China has been beefing up its naval power to deter the United States from coming to Taiwan’s aid in a military confrontation with China. The United States needs to counter China’s naval modernization with stronger air-sea power and credible alliances. The video is downloadable at https://wetransfer.com/downloads/fd8b20313e8a2c3f6ab5a89e9eca170520211110135823/3a8b6be2ce6b62b3b992be37a7455bfa20211110135852/58b0a2.

Professor and Chair of Political Science and International Affairs Elizabeth Freund Larus

Dr. Elizabeth Freund Larus, Professor and Chairman of the Department of Political Science and International Affairs, conducted an interview on China’s aggression against Taiwan on Newsy morning program, Oct 12. Professor Larus commented that recent incursions into Taiwan’s ADIZ by Chinese military planes signal to both Taiwan and the U.S. that China will never relinquish its claims to the island.

Professor and Chair of Political Science and International Affairs Elizabeth Freund Larus

Elizabeth Larus, Professor and Chairman of the Department of Political Science and International Affairs indicated that any economic “de-coupling” between the U.S. and China will be very difficult. “You can’t just say you’re going to pick up your factory and move all your resources and have a consistent, reliable energy source and the shipping port to get your stuff out at a decent price, and the logistics. China has nailed that down,” said Larus, the author of Politics and Society in Contemporary China. She also indicated that China seeks to make the world reliant on the country for its supply chain, but not to have China reliant on the rest of the world. She did not see a de-escalation in U.S.-China relations any time soon. Read her comments at:
https://www.klcc.org/post/china-threat-or-opportunity-depends-which-americans-you-ask
https://www.npr.org/2021/10/08/1041137034/is-china-a-threat-or-an-opportunity-depends-which-americans-you-ask
https://wamu.org/story/21/10/08/is-china-a-threat-or-an-opportunity-depends-which-americans-you-ask/