Sino-Us Military Cooperation During the Cold War: The Case of “Peace Pearl” Program

Introduction. The subject of the article is the China-US “Peace Pearl” program carried out in the 1980s within the context of the China-USA-USSR triangle. The focus of this study is the analysis of the formation and collapse of the “Peace Pearl” program, including its background events, through the lens of realist international relations theory. This analysis will also take into account the changes in the international arena during that period. Methods and materials. The analysis is based on a number of theoretical documents and historical facts, in combination with basic works of realist international relations theory scholars. Analysis. In the first half of the 1980s, the international context, viewed through the lens of realism, dictated China’s rapprochement with the United States, with the “Peace Pearl” program aimed at jointly improving 50 Chinese J-8II fighters embodying it, which allowed China to enhance its military and aerospace industries. However, in the second half of the 1980s, the political climate significantly changed. China and the USA shifted from cooperation to traditional mild rivalry due to significant political changes in the USSR (serving as structural stimulus, from a realist perspective, for the changes in politics) and political turmoil in China in 1989. As a result, the “Peace Pearl” program was abandoned. Results. First, structural factors in the international arena significantly influenced both the formation and collapse of the “Peace Pearl” program, with the changes in the USSR politics playing a vital role in this process. Second, China’s role as a mediator in a bipolar international system allowed it to gain benefit from the international configuration, as it obtained opportunities for its military development through the realization of the “Peace Pearl” program. Authors’ contribution. Menglong Li – writing the original text of the article, conceptualization, project management. Yifu Lin – collecting and searching a wide range of historical materials, government documents, and academic journals relevant to the compilation of the “Peace Pearl” program from both the United States and China sides. Aleksandra Gulkova – analyzing the program through the prism of neorealism, writing the part concerning the realist perspective, mainly its practical application in the context of the evaluation of the “Peace Pearl” program, assessing Russian sources, and applying them to the analysis of the “Peace Pearl” program case.