- US Foreign Policy
- China
- History
- International Affairs
- Security & Defense
- Confronting and Competing with China
In this episode of China Considered, Dr. Elizabeth Economy speaks with Randy Schriver and Mike Kuiken of the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission about national security and economic policy towards China, and how the two are intertwined. They explain how the Commission monitors emerging risks, from advanced technologies like AI and quantum computing to vulnerabilities in supply chains and tracking scam centers abroad, culminating in a yearly report to Congress.
The conversation touches on the current US approach to “economic statecraft” and whether a more coordinated framework for export controls, sanctions, and trade policy could be beneficial. The discussion broadens to include rising geopolitical tensions—particularly around Taiwan—alongside China’s support for Russia and Iran and the implications of their growing coordination, concluding with an emphasis on the importance of better aligning US domestic capabilities and strengthening alliances to compete effectively in both economic and security domains.
Recorded on April 27, 2026.
ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
Mike Kuiken is a distinguished visiting fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution and serves as vice chair of the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission. Kuiken is the Managing Member of Silver Valley Strategies, where he advises founders, CEOs, and investors on geopolitical and government strategies. Mike previously served as the Senate majority leader's national security advisor. He was a 'Gang of Eight' staffer for over seven years. He architected the legislative strategy to pass the CHIPS and Science Act and played a key role in establishing the Senate's Artificial Intelligence Insight Forums. His work has spanned the most consequential challenges of the post-9/11 era—from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq to today's strategic competition with China.
Randall G. Schriver is chairman of the Board at The Institute for Indo-Pacific Security. In addition, Schriver is currently a partner at Pacific Solutions LLC. Schriver was a founding partner of Armitage International LLC, and founder, president, and CEO of Project 2049 Institute. He has served in government as assistant secretary of defense for Indo-Pacific security affairs, deputy assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, and as chief of staff and senior policy advisor to the deputy secretary of state. Earlier in his career, he worked in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, including as the senior official responsible for the day-to-day management of US bilateral relations with the People’s Liberation Army and the bilateral security and military relationships with Taiwan.
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.
RELATED SOURCES
- U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission. 2025 Annual Report to Congress. Washington, DC: U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, November 18, 2025.
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.
