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Nina Hachigian is a Senior Fellow at American Progress. Based in Los Angeles, she is the co-author of The Next American Century: How the U.S. Can Thrive as Other Powers[…]

Should there be a boycott of the Olympics?

Nina Hachigan:  I think that NGOs- human rights NGOs- have done an effective job at putting pressure on Beijing over the Tibet situation, and I think that it has paid some dividends in these talks that are now ongoing with the Dalai Lama. Some people say they’re a sham, some people say they might- you know, they might result in something. I don’t think that the United States ought to boycott. I think there’s- you get a possibility that the President could not attend the opening ceremonies, but that’s something you should decide a few months from now to see what happens with these talks. I think if they are genuine in trying to make some sort of a difference, which most people say they aren’t, but that we ought to acknowledge that they have at least made an effort. But, ultimately, we don’t wanna isolate China. Ultimately, we want China to step up to the plate and be a responsible player in the global system, and that is a harder challenge for the United States than worrying about their aggression. So, getting them to actually pay for some of the public goods that the United States has been providing, actually getting them to take responsibility and ownership- that’s the bigger challenge.

 


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