Despite its impressive size and population, economic vitality, and drive to upgrade its military capabilities, China remains a vulnerable nation surrounded by powerful rivals and potential foes. The key to understanding China¿s foreign policy is to grasp these geostrategic challenges, which persist even as the country comes to dominate its neighbors. Andrew J. Nathan and Andrew Scobell analyze China¿s security concerns on four fronts: at home, with its immediate neighbors, in surrounding regional systems, and in the world beyond Asia. By illuminating the issues driving Chinese policy, they offer new perspective on China¿s rise and a strategy for balancing Chinese and American interests in Asia. Though rooted in the present, Nathan and Scobell¿s study makes ample use of the past, reaching back into history to contextualize the people and institutions shaping Chinese strategy.