- US Foreign Policy
- China
- International Affairs
- Security & Defense
- Confronting and Competing with China
In this episode, Elizabeth Economy sits down with former Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell to talk about his distinguished career, Indo-Pacific strategy, and the recent presidential summit in Beijing. They start by talking about Campbell’s early years in government, including his experience in military diplomacy negotiating with both the Chinese and Taiwanese. The two then discuss the current impact the war in Iran is having on both China and the broader geostrategic relationship as it pertains to the Trump-Xi meeting; Campbell describes the Chinese perspective as President Trump arrived in Beijing as a “correlation of power in many respects has shifted against the president”. In the broader strategic context, Economy and Campbell then emphasize the importance of working together with allies and partners, even if a current overarching strategy is lacking. The two conclude by discussing what the US role in Asia, and the international system, may look like going forward, and how it has already changed.
Recorded on May 14, 2026.
ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
Dr. Kurt M. Campbell is the chairman and co-founder of The Asia Group. He most recently served as the 22nd Deputy Secretary of State of the United States. In that role, he played a key role in strengthening America’s diplomatic standing and in modernizing the US Department of State to meet enduring global challenges. Before assuming his role at the State Department, Campbell served as the inaugural Indo-Pacific coordinator at the National Security Council and deputy assistant to the President at the White House from 2021 to 2024. From 2009 to 2013, Campbell served as Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, where he is widely credited as the key architect of the “Pivot to Asia.” He began his career as an officer in the US Navy, serving on surface ships, at the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and in the Chief of Naval Operations Strategic Advisory Unit. He was also an associate professor of public policy and international relations at Harvard’s John F Kennedy School of Government.
Elizabeth Economy is the Hargrove Senior Fellow and co-director of the Program on the US, China, and the World at the Hoover Institution. From 2021-2023, she took leave from Hoover to serve as the senior advisor for China to the US Secretary of Commerce. Before joining Hoover, she was the C.V. Starr Senior Fellow and director, Asia Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations. She is the author of four books on China, including most recently The World According to China (Polity, 2021), and the co-editor of two volumes. She serves on the boards of the National Endowment for Democracy and the National Committee on US-China Relations. She is a member of the Aspen Strategy Group and Council on Foreign Relations and serves as a book reviewer for Foreign Affairs.
ABOUT THE SERIES
China Considered with Elizabeth Economy is a Hoover Institution podcast series that features in-depth conversations with leading political figures, scholars, and activists from around the world. The series explores the ideas, events, and forces shaping China’s future and its global relationships, offering high-level expertise, clear-eyed analysis, and valuable insights to demystify China’s evolving dynamics and what they may mean for ordinary citizens and key decision-makers across societies, governments, and the private sector.
