What China and the US must do in 2017 to improve relations
Wang Jisi says the Sino-US relationship has entered a new normal, with cooperation and competition both increasing, leading to a repeated pattern of escalation and de-escalation of tensions
With both Beijing and Washington likely to be more focused on domestic priorities in 2017 and beyond, we can hope that they will be able to approach their relationship in a spirit of cooperation and peaceful competition. Illustration: Craig Stephens
With the 2016 US presidential election behind us, China and the United States are now stepping into an uncertain new political cycle in their relationship. The question at hand is whether the relationship will weather this period successfully and head in a healthy and steady direction.
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A fundamental and urgent issue for leaders in both Washington and Beijing is how to reduce strategic distrust. A popular view among Chinese political elite is that the US intends to undermine Chinese Communist Party leadership by supporting dissidents; spreading US ideology in Chinese society; and encouraging pro-independence or separatist tendencies in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Tibet ( 西藏 ) and Xinjiang (新疆). Another strong belief in China is that the US is working to contain China internationally by consolidating US security alliances and military arrangements, and by involving itself in territorial disputes between China and some neighbouring countries.
Recent US actions have included increased sabre-rattling activities in the South China Sea and a decision to install an anti-missile system in South Korea that is viewed as threatening to China. All these actions have been part of what is called the US “pivot” or “rebalancing” towards Asia, a strategic adjustment first announced by the US government several years ago.
A woman walks past a billboard in Weifang, Shandong province, highlighting the South China Sea dispute. There’s a strong belief in China that the US is working to contain China internationally, while in the US, there are clear concerns in some quarters that China may become an assertive hegemon in Asia. Photo: Chinatopix via AP
In the US, many are suspicious that today’s China, with enhanced power and strong leadership, will try to reshape the current world order that has by and large served US interests and goals thus far. Some Americans are disturbed by actions China has recently taken to maintain its domestic stability and worry that these might affect US economic and educational exchanges with China. Others question the intentions behind Chinese initiatives such as the “One Belt, One Road” project and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. In particular, there are clear concerns in some quarters that China may become an assertive hegemon in Asia, at the expense of the long-standing role and influence of the United States.
