President Carter’s decision to normalize diplomatic relations between the United States and the People’s Republic of China in 1979 changed both countries and the world. Facilitating expanded bilateral trade, investment, and people-to-people exchange between the two countries has allowed East Asia to enjoy relative peace and prosperity for decades.

However, the U.S.-China relationship is now under immense strain. Since 2009, the Chinese Communist Party has veered from the path of “reform and opening” that encouraged slow and steady progress toward political and economic liberalization. Washington began to criticize China’s attempts to revise the international system, and Beijing responded by accusing the U.S. of containing China’s rise.

As President Carter wrote in February 2021, “Government officials in both countries have adopted rhetoric and policies that reflect the hostility that Vice Premier Deng and I sought to calm in 1978.”

The Carter Center remains committed to preserving the legacy of President Carter and Deng Xiaoping’s historic decision while adapting to the demands of the 21st century. This requires navigating a bilateral relationship fraught with global crises, ideological divergence, human rights crises, nationalist tension, and the looming threat of conflict in the Taiwan Strait. Through its research, workshops, and online engagement initiatives, China Focus fosters greater dialogue, exchange, and critical reflection on the past, present, and future of U.S.-China relations.

Today, The Carter Center manages three websites focused on bilateral relations and U.S.-China public opinion. These are the English- and Chinese-language U.S.-China Perception Monitor websites (now inaccessible in mainland China) and the Chinese-language China-America Stories website (currently accessible in mainland China). Content includes a variety of interviews with American and Chinese scholars, insightful analyses of U.S.-China relations, surveys of Chinese public opinion, profiles of key opinion leaders in the bilateral relationship, translations of influential commentaries into English or Chinese, and more.