6:04 Today’s forum features discussions with former Ambassador, governor, and presidential candidate Jon Huntsman, Washington Post journalist Keith Richburg, and Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd – Colin Diersing
6:05 Huntsman has a past as a failed rock musician. Keith Richburg’s words, not mine. – Priyanka Menon
6:08 Huntsman on the future of US-China relations: “The world order is changing…the future will be determined by how America and Americans respond to the shift in the world order” – Priyanka Menon
6:09 Huntsman on the nature of U.S. China’s relationship: “We are pretty much married. And divorce isn’t an option. You just have to make the damn thing work.” Follows up with a critique of the shallowness of conversation about China during 2012 election – Colin Diersing
6:10 Rudd laughs off Huntsman’s reference to his status as ‘elder statesman’ – Colin Diersing
6:11 Rudd sees “can we manage the rise of China without seeing conflict with the United States” as the central question of the first half of the 21st century. He believes the answer is yes. – Priyanka Menon
6:11 Rudd says sometime in the future will likely be “the first time since George the third that a non-western non-democracy is the largest economy on the globe… this is no small thing.” – Colin Diersing
6:15 Huntsman: “In the U.S. government if you don’t have a working group with China… you’re not a player” – Colin Diersing
6:16 Huntsman seems focused on greatly deepening US-China ties (e.g. the marriage metaphor as well as the remarks pushing regular meetings between the highest levels of our government). This comes as a contrast to the combative rhetoric of many politicians on the issue of US-China relations. – Priyanka Menon
6:23 Rudd: “If there is good will between the two of them, you can make progress.” He seems to be echoing Huntsman on this. – Priyanka Menon
6:23 Huntsman: We need to think bigger, more aspirational about the U.S-China relationship. We’re missing that now. Without that you fall victim to the headlines and the tit for tat. – Priyanka Menon
6:25 Huntsman: “I would argue we have two to three good years ahead… time to put in place a sort of visionary relationship” – Colin Diersing
6:26 Rudd says Chinese are looking at Kerry’s upcoming visit with “anticipation and a degree of trepidation” – Colin Diersing
6:26 Rudd gets laugh for line “Europe still exists,” defending Kerry’s travel schedule so far – Colin Diersing
6:27 Thought Rudd was over Huntsman’s old joke… but just referred to his early career as the ‘paleolithic period.’ Also, fact check reveals Rudd to be only three years older than Huntsman. – Colin Diersing
6:30 Increasing trust and goodwill between the US and China seems to be the overall message of Huntsman and Rudd – Priyanka Menon
6:33 First student question is about ability of U.S. and China to work together on climate change – Colin Diersing
6:35 Rudd: “The US needs to get its act together” with regards to US action on climate change – Priyanka Menon
6:36 Huntsman: “A Republican talking about climate change, I don’t want to get struck by lightning” Rudd: “It does increase extreme weather events, you know that?” – Colin Diersing
6:37 Huntsman: “What we fundamentally need is to harmonize how we read science…we are not anywhere near that” – Priyanka Menon
6:40 Twitter question (irony?) asks whether US and China are already in cyber war from the HPR’s Tom Silver. Huntsman passes to Rudd. – Colin Diersing
6:40 The theme of trust building arises again in Rudd’s answer to the question on cyberwar – Priyanka Menon
6:42 Huntsman calls China “80% of the problem” in cyber intrusion and says China doesn’t recognize red lines. – Colin Diersing
6:44 Huntsman uses Taiwan analogy to argue that pressure from domestic constituencies are the key – Colin Diersing
6:45 Rudd asked to give an example of Chinese investment that is not in Australia’s national interest. He seems to skirt answering the question. – Priyanka Menon
6:47 First scattered applause of the night go to Huntsman for joke about U.S. bailouts in reference to question about interplay between Chinese government and enterprise – Colin Diersing
6:51 Huntsman on last election cycle: “Did we have a single constructive cycle about hte U.S. China relationship or did we pull apart, for the purposes of pandering, the parts of the relationship” that were easiest to attack? Seems he thinks the former. – Colin Diersing
6:52 Huntsman: Focusing on the dysfunctionality of China and high unemployment results in Americans’ fear of China – Priyanka Menon
6:52 Huntsman blames media coverage for part of Americans’ ‘prism of fear’ towards China. Says bad politics are complicating Congress’ ability to understand and interact with the issue. – Colin Diersing
6:53 Huntsman: “People in their individual communities need to see that there is some benefit to the US-China relationship” – Priyanka Menon
6:55 Huntsman: “I am concerned about how the next generation sees the US-China relationship. We’ve had a lot of goodwill in the past and I think a lot of that is eroding.” Interesting statement, given the audience in the Forum tonight. – Priyanka Menon
6:58 Rudd on the China-North Korea relationship: “With friends like North Korea, who needs enemies?” – Colin Diersing
6:59 Rudd says Beijing is having its first “private and public debate” about rethinking relationship with Pyongyang – Colin Diersing
7:00 Huntsman: North Korea is a chance for close collaboration between China and the U.S. Also compares North Korea to “the crazy uncle who shows up on Thanksgiving.” This is the second familial metaphor Huntsman’s used tonight. – Priyanka Menon
7:01 Huntsman says current North Korean tension is just Kim Jong Un consolidating power. You have to let it pass. – Colin Diersing
7:04 Rudd says negotiators can’t just “rely on traditional Chinese bureaucracy” which has incentives and culture of being cautious and uncreative – Colin Diersing
7:09 Question on how Australia can be a bridge between China and the West – Priyanka Menon
7:10 Rudd: “For twenty, thirty years now, we in Australia have seen so much of our future lying in the Asian hemisphere.” He goes on to state that “frankly, we don’t frighten anybody.” – Priyanka Menon
7:14 Huntsman on the rise of special interest politics in China: “25 years from now, Chinese politics will look just like the United States. Heaven forbid!” – Priyanka Menon
7:18 Great discussion on the rise of China. As always, thank you for a great forum, JFK Jr. Forum committee! – Priyanka Menon and Colin Diersing