On the evening of September 6, Rosemary Foot, a distinguished professor of Oxford University and China expert delivered a speech named “Power in International Relations: Taking Sino-US Relations as an example” in Rm. 138, Zijingang Int’l Conference Center of ZJU. Professor Yu Xiaofeng of School of Public Administration chaired the lecture. It is the 54^th of the lectures of “Zhejiang University Oriental Forum”.

Rosemary Foot first divided the power into “power of resources”, “power of relations” and “power of structure”. Power, as a source, refers to a hard force, e.g. military power and power of providing public security, but it is not necessarily a panacea for achieving national goal. The power of relations, connected with resources, refer to a mutual independence and mutual competition between one country and other countries. Power of structure means the capability of a country endowed by certain rules, regulations and policies.

Professor Foot also introduced “soft power” in great detail. The “soft power”, first put forward by Joseph Nye of HarvardUniversity, refers to the ability of influencing others’ choices, e.g. culture, ideology and system of attraction. Soft power can only be obtained naturally from attraction, identity and appreciation by a comparative advantage instead of from coercion or military threats. Soft power is a non-threatening power.

Professor Foot, with her detailed and systematic analysis of traits and features of power and comparison of China, America and Japan, made the lecture both theoretical, vivid, logic and unique. And then, Professor Foot answered questions about Sino-Us and Sino-European relations in Chinese rising, the impact of cultural factors on power politics and development of world “poles” from the audience. Her profound wisdom and academic capacity won the warm applause from the audience.