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The history of Sino-American relations since the eighteenth century has been powerfully influenced by a series of ad hoc, one might say grassroots American actors, often only loosely bound to the United States government. This insight is the central theme running through this introductory chapter which seeks to offer a new window onto Sino-American relations. While these ad hoc relationships had a powerful influence on US-China relations since the earliest interactions between the two countries, World War II marked a turning point as these ad hoc actors were subsumed into a larger state-centered system of engagement.
In the 1930s-40s, American peace activists increasingly turned to the war in China to make a wide range of arguments around intervention, sanctions, embargos, the efficacy of international institutions, and appropriate political and ethical responses. At the same time, Chinese activists also sought to establish connections with these different transnational organizations for their own political goals and ideals. While some of these efforts undoubtedly helped raise support for China’s war of resistance, they also enmeshed Chinese actors and organizations within a larger international network of cooperation and exchange over the course of the war. Two prominent American peace movements, the Fellowship of Reconciliation (FOR) and the American League for Peace and Democracy (ALPD), cultivated a series of engagements between American and Chinese activists that saw a shift in emphasis from non-violence and anti-war positions to an acceptance of forceful resistance against fascist aggression.
This timely collection of essays examines Sino-American relations during the Second World War, the Chinese Civil War and the opening of the Cold War. Drawing on new sources uncovered in China, Taiwan, the UK and the US, the authors demonstrate how 'grassroots' engagements - not just elite diplomacy - established the trans-Pacific networks that both shaped the postwar order in Asia, and continue to influence Sino-US relations today. In these crucial years, servicemen, scientists, students, businesspeople, activists, bureaucrats and many others travelled between the US and China. In every chapter, this innovative volume's approach uncovers their stories using both Chinese and English language sources. By examining interactions among various Chinese and American actors in the dynamic wartime environment, Uneasy Allies reveals a new perspective on the foundations of American power, the brittle nature of the Sino-American relationship, and the early formation of the institutions that shaped the Cold War Pacific.