Dr. Miles Yu Professor of East Asia and Military and Naval History at the United States Naval Academy and former principal China policy and planning adviser to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo
National Congresses tend to focus on renewing the Party’s leadership, recapping recent successes and, occasionally, signaling subtle changes of policy.
The 20th Congress, which ended October 22nd was no exception. As a Financial Times headline put it ‘Xi tightens grip and economy drops down the agenda.’ He accepted an unprecedented third term as Party Head, Commander in Chief, and President. He filled the Politburo Standing Committee with loyalists rather than the traditional mix of ages and viewpoints. He did not designate a successor. Taiwan was clearly on his mind. The language of his speech emphasized ‘Military’, ‘Security’ and ‘Struggle’, rather than growth.
Our December speaker is well qualified to explore how these changes may influence China’s military strategy, foreign relations and economic policies, as well as their implications for the United States and its allies.
Miles Yu is a professor of East Asia and military and naval history at the United States Naval Academy, where he specializes in Chinese military and strategic culture, US and Chinese military and diplomatic history, and US policy toward China. He is also a senior fellow and director of the China Center at the Hudson Institute and a Visiting Fellow at the Hoover Institution.
Dr. Yu served as the China policy adviser to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, advising the secretary on all China-related issues, helping overhaul US policy toward China, and participating in key US government interagency deliberations on major policy and government actions with regard to China and other East Asian countries.
Dr. Yu’s books include OSS in China: Prelude to Cold War (Yale University Press, 1997) and The Dragon’s War: Allied Operations and the Fate of China, 1937–1947 (Naval Institute Press, 2006).
His numerous awards include the US Naval Academy's top researcher award, US Navy Special Action Awards, and US Navy Meritorious Service Award.
Dr. Yu received a doctorate in history from the University of California, Berkeley, a master’s degree from Swarthmore College, and a bachelor’s degree from Nankai University.