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United States Institute of Peace

Alex Stephenson

Program Specialist, China

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Please submit all media inquiries to interviews@usip.org or call 202.429.3869.

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Alex Stephenson is a program specialist with the China team at USIP. He focuses on U.S.-China relations, the People’s Liberation Army and Chinese defense policy, and Indo-Pacific security.

He previously worked as a research assistant at Georgetown University’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET), where his research focused on the Chinese military's adoption of artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies. Prior to CSET, Stephenson served as a surface warfare officer in the U.S. Navy.

Stephenson is currently pursuing a master’s in Asian studies with a concentration in security and politics at Georgetown University’s Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service. In addition to his studies, he serves as an editor for the Georgetown Journal of Asian Affairs. He holds bachelor’s degrees in business administration and Asian studies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He speaks Mandarin.

Publications By Alex

South China Sea: Crisis Communication Is Crucial to De-escalate Geopolitical Tensions

South China Sea: Crisis Communication Is Crucial to De-escalate Geopolitical Tensions

Thursday, September 7, 2023

By: Brian Harding;  Alex Stephenson

During the August 5 crisis at Second Thomas Shoal, the Philippines Department of Foreign Affairs tried to contact its Chinese counterparts through a bilateral hotline. Manila’s effort to de-escalate the standoff despite being the victim of Chinese aggression was laudable. Unfortunately, the calls went unanswered. Officials in Washington have shared the same experience on many occasions — when communication is needed most, Beijing can’t be reached.

Type: Analysis and Commentary

Global Policy

Five Things to Know About China’s Armed Forces

Five Things to Know About China’s Armed Forces

Wednesday, August 2, 2023

By: Andrew Scobell, Ph.D.;  Alex Stephenson

The People’s Liberation Army, which celebrated its 96th birthday on August 1, is one of the largest, most potent and fast-growing militaries in the world. Chinese leader Xi Jinping has made it a goal for the PLA to “modernize” by 2035 and to be a “world-class” military power by mid-century. In 2014, China’s Navy overtook the U.S. Navy to become the largest military fleet in the world — although the U.S. Navy is still considered to be more powerful. While China is notoriously opaque about its level of defense spending, it is widely believed that China has the largest defense budget in the world other than the United States.

Type: Analysis and Commentary

Civilian-Military Relations;  Global Policy

Four Takeaways from the ASEAN Summit

Four Takeaways from the ASEAN Summit

Thursday, July 20, 2023

By: Brian Harding;  Alex Stephenson;  Jason Tower

Foreign ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) gathered last week in Jakarta, with a range of critical challenges to address. Chief among those issues was the crisis in member state Myanmar, which the bloc is divided on how to approach. China’s aggressive activities in the South China Sea were also a key topic at the summit, with Beijing and ASEAN pledging to reach an agreement on a long-stalled non-binding code of conduct.

Type: Analysis and Commentary

Global Policy

Blinken’s Beijing Trip: ‘Constructive’ but No Breakthroughs

Blinken’s Beijing Trip: ‘Constructive’ but No Breakthroughs

Thursday, June 22, 2023

By: Carla Freeman, Ph.D.;  Rosie Levine;  Alison McFarland;  Alex Stephenson

Over the weekend, Secretary of State Antony Blinken finally made it to Beijing, where he met with senior-level Chinese Communist Party officials, including Xi Jinping. This trip was originally scheduled for early February but delayed nearly five months following the U.S. detection of a Chinese spy balloon hovering over American territory. Already on a downward trajectory before the balloon debacle, U.S.-China relations have continued to spiral since, as high-level communication has been on pause. While no major breakthroughs were made in Beijing and both sides stuck to their boilerplate talking points on issues of disagreement, the resumption of high-level dialogue is a positive step.

Type: Analysis and Commentary

Global Policy

Three Takeaways on U.S.-China Relations After the Shangri-La Summit

Three Takeaways on U.S.-China Relations After the Shangri-La Summit

Wednesday, June 7, 2023

By: Rosie Levine;  Alex Stephenson

Defense ministers from around the world gathered in Singapore last weekend for the annual Shangri-La Dialogue, a forum for discussing security challenges in Asia and an opportunity for high-ranking security officials to engage in bilateral talks. However, U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin did not meet with his Chinese counterpart, Li Shangfu. Beijing suspended formal military-to-military meetings last August following then-Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan. Since then, U.S.-China tensions have only ratcheted up, particularly following revelations this February that a Chinese surveillance balloon was hovering over U.S. territory.

Type: Analysis and Commentary

Global Policy;  Mediation, Negotiation & Dialogue

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