01 The 2020 US Presidential Election and the Trend of America’s Domestic and Foreign Policies,by Zhang Wenzong, assistant director and associate research professor at the Institute of American Studies, CICIR; and Zhang Chenyang, graduate student at the School of International Studies, Liaoning University. The 2020 US presidential election is a very special one held in the context that the COVID-19 pandemic is out of control, the economy and finance are in turmoil, and social unrests are continuing in the country. The high voter turnout from both Parties and post-vote controversies are as much a ref lection of the intensity of the race as changes in the voting pattern caused by the outbreak of the epidemic, underscoring the high polarization of American politics and the deep rifts in society. Biden’s landslide victory over Trump in both the popular vote and electoral college presages a shift to the left in US domestic politics, a return to multilateralism in foreign policy, and a less extreme approach to China. However, as the populist right in the US remains powerful, coupled with the Republican’s control of the Senate and the conservative Supreme Court, the incoming Biden administration will face huge domestic constraints.

16 On the Rise and Impacts of the Trumpism,by Teng Jianqun, senior research fellow at China Institute of International Studies, and director of the Center for Arms Control and International Security Studies, CIIS. The outcome of the 2020 US election is in sight. Since Trump’s election in 2016, many Americans do not accept this nonestablishment president. President Trump is a maverick, as he opposes both establishment and liberalism, is keen on ensuring economic recovery, insists on reciprocal trade with other countries, strengthens the US military build-up, and returns to the American spirit, all of which are aimed at keeping “America First”. As a political naivete, his rise stems from the polarization of American society and evolution of international order. Currently, although the Democrat Joe Biden has won the election, Trumpism, as a social trend of thought and phenomenon, will continue to influence America’s domestic politics and foreign policy.

32 The Evolution Logic of America’s Indo-Pacific Strategy and China’s Response,by Chen Jimin, deputy director and professor at the Division of World’ Trends of Thought under the Institute of Strategic Studies of the Party School of Central Committee of CPC (National Academy of Governance) and Guest Researcher of CPDS; and Feng Zhennan, graduate student at the Graduate School of the Party School of Central Committee of CPC (National Academy of Governance). The “Indo-Pacific” strategy of the United States has undergone three phases, namely the proposition as the “Indo-Pacif ic” vision in 2017, the clarif ication as the “Indo-Pacif ic” strategy in 2018, and the implementation as a strategy since 2019. This strategy is not only the outcome of America’s continuous adjustment of its national security strategy in the background of hegemony declining, but also the continuation and consolidation of the eastward shift of its diplomatic and strategic focus. After more than three years’ deliberation and implementation, the US “Indo-Pacific” strategy has made some headway at the military (security), political (economic) and regional levels, and manifested such characteristics as giving priority to security, developing and re-shaping relations with allies and partners, and emphasizing “inheritance and innovation” equally in building institutions.

53 Strategic Reflections of Russia on the Evolving International Landscape under the Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic,by Dr. Chen Yu, assistant research professor at the Institute for Eurasian Studies, CICIR. The Russian strategic and academic circles have believed the COVID-19 pandemic is re-shaping the world power structure; the tension between China and the US exacerbated by the epidemic is structural; and the risk of a bipolar confrontation is rising, which may be more dangerous than the cold war between the Soviet Union and the United States. Russia wants to take advantage of the changes in the international landscape, especially the opportunities brought by the intensif ied game between China and the US, to enhance its status as a major power. Russia’s judgment and goals have stemmed from its strategic tradition of realism, its long-term sensitivity to the East-West issues, the conservative trend of national development and ideology, and the latest changes in domestic politics. To achieve this objective, Russia is to focus on adjusting its relations with other major powers, strengthening its Eurasia strategy, and consolidating its conservative ideology and policies. On the whole, although the judgment made and countermeasures proposed by Russia’s strategic community and others are rather pragmatic, the realization of the goals has to face some impediments.

73 Analysis of the Modi Government’s “Self-Sufficient India” Economic Initiative,by Dr. Ning Shengnan, assistant research fellow at China Institute of International Studies. In May 2020, Prime Minister Modi of India off icially introduced the “Self-Suff icient India” initiative as the economic agenda for his second term in off ice, which aims not only at resolving employment and other pressing livelihood issues, but also at addressing such long-terms issues as promoting economic recovery and revitalizing domestic manufacturing industry. In essence, this initiative is intended to expand India’s production capacity on the basis of ensuring domestic demand, strengthen the weak links in India’s supply and industrial chains, and provide new impetus for India’s economic growth. The introduction of this initiative is not a hasty move in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak, but a ref lection of the trend of protectionism and economic nationalism long promoted by the BJP government. However, as India’s domestic market has become less of a driver for economic growth and the initiative has distortions and contradictions in itself, it is rather hard for the Modi government to realize the dream of making India a world-class economic power by “decoupling with China” and boosting economic localization.

91 Inf luence of European Public Opinion on the EU Immigration and Asylum Policies: An Analysis of the European Immigration Crisis,by Guan Xin, doctoral student at the Center for European Studies and the School of International Relations, Renmin University of China; and Fang Lexian, professor at the Center for European Studies and the School of International Relations, Renmin University of China. In the study of immigration in Europe, there are two trends of ignoring and attaching importance to the inf luence of public opinion on the EU immigration and asylum policies. As the policies adopted by the EU to deal with the immigration crisis since 2015 show, the inf luence of public opinion on such policies cannot be ignored. Since the European immigration crisis occurred, the EU public has attached growing importance to the immigration issue, and their perceptions of threats from immigrant groups have also been on the rise. Public attitudes on the immigration issue within the EU have not only played an important role in shaping policy preferences of member states toward the immigrants, but also served as a major reference standard for their policy-making. Understanding the influence of public opinion on the EU immigration and asylum policies is of great significance for us to grasp the relations between them, and understand the situation of European integration.

105 An Initial Analysis of the Reason for the Rise of Identity Politics in Contemporary Indonesia,by Na Min, doctoral student at University of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. Identity politics is an important political phenomenon in contemporary Indonesia, which has played a role that cannot be ignored in recent presidential and local elections in Indonesia. The reason for the rise of identity politics in contemporary Indonesia lies in the rift of system and thought in the process of political transition in the developing countries. In this rift, the sense of stability and belonging brought by tradition and religion has made identity politics that emphasizes ethnicity and religion f lourish, thus making political Islam an important ideological source, which, in turn, relates closely to the social structure and historical legacy of Indonesia.

121 An Probe into the Influence of External Culture on a Country,by Wu Sai, doctoral student at the School of Government, Beijing Normal University; and Li Xing, professor and doctoral supervisor at the School of History, Beijing Normal University. External culture is an important and special existence, which not only has certain positive impacts on the prosperity and development of a country, but also brings a series of problems for national governance that need to be addressed. Based on the cognition and value judgment of external culture, countries will take different policy models to cope with it. China will respond to the problems brought by external culture in an all-round way under the guidance of Xi Jinping’s thought on socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era, and based on China’s overall national security concept, cultural confidence, and the ideas of putting people first and forging a community with a shared future for humanity, which will provide suff icient theoretical inspiration and a clear practical guidance for China to deal with the external cultural diversity, and ensure that China’s policies toward external culture will develop in a positive and benef icial direction.