Relations between the United States and China will be on the agenda at the next meeting of the Deltaville Great Decisions group next week.

Dr. Taiyi Sun, an assistant professor of political science at Christopher Newport University, will lead the discussion at 10 a.m. on Friday, Feb. 7 at the Deltaville Community Association building, 17147 General Puller Highway, Deltaville. His research focuses on Chinese politics, Sino-U.S. relations, state-society relations, and civic engagement.

Washington’s relations with Beijing have reached an ominous low ebb, a release from the Great Decisions’ group stated. Both American political parties have identified China as the country’s preeminent geopolitical challenger in the eyes of many, a systemic threat. The talk will examine what is driving this deterioration of Sino-American relations, and what are America’s strategic options in the face of Chinese power and ambitions.

Sun appears regularly on domestic and international media outlets, such as Virginia Humanities (based in the U.S.), China Times (based in Taiwan), Phoenix International, Hong Kong 01 (both based in Hong Kong), China Global Television Network, Shenzhen Satellite TV (both based in mainland China), and Eurasia Experts (based in Russia), as a commentator and contributor. He coauthored a recent publication, “The Myth of War in the Taiwan Straits.”

The session will start with a 40-50-minute presentation, a coffee/cookie break, followed by a question-and-answer period. The session concludes at noon.

To learn more about each topic, the 2025 Great Decisions briefing book provides an article written by prominent experts on each topic and is available for purchase for $25 at the Deltaville and Urbanna branches of the Middlesex Library and at each Friday meeting. Supply is limited.

The group’s Feb. 14 topic is “Artificial Intelligence and American National Security” and will include AI demonstrations. Great Decisions is America’s largest discussion program on world affairs.