Sino File | Trump versus China: is this the dawn of a second cold war?
As the US president continues his roller-coaster diplomacy with China there are signs that the rivalry between the world’s most dominant superpower – and its fastest rising one – will only intensify
Donald Trump certainly seems intent on reigniting old rivalries with China and Russia after he fired salvoes attacking the countries on an economic, political, military and ideological level not seen since the fall of the Soviet Union.
In several recent policy statements – the state-of-the-union address, the national defence strategy, the national security strategy and nuclear posture review – the US president has suggested that China, along with Russia, are major rivals, which, together with rogue regimes and terrorist organs, “challenge US economy, interests and values”. In confronting these dangers, “unmatched power” is the surest means.
The latest rhetoric, contrasting with the usually more collaborative approach of every US president since Nixon, came after the roller-coaster ride in relations during his first year as president. Trump pivoted from a China-bashing inaugural speech and accusations of Chinese of hacking and the theft of American jobs, to “panda hug” tactics with President Xi Jinping, having cultivated “bromance” with “great chemistry” during their meetings in April and November. Now, it’s back to Trump the Belligerent after he became the first US president to specifically define China as “rival” since Richard Nixon’s ice-breaking trip to China in 1971.
Trump’s first year failed the China test. His second looks far worse
There are reasons to believe the rivalry between the world’s most dominant superpower and its fastest rising one will continue to escalate.
