Resetting US ties with China: Multilateralism vs protectionism

THE two-day meetings between top Chinese and American officials in Anchorage, Alaska, last week - the first high-level talks between the two global powers since US President Joe Biden took office - were marked by testy exchanges between the two sides and dampened hopes, if there had been any, of a diplomatic rapprochement between Beijing and Washington anytime soon.

No serious diplomatic observer believed that the tensions over trade and other issues that developed under ex-president Donald Trump would fade away after he left office. In fact, a powerful bipartisan consensus has been taking shape in Washington in recent years, with both Republicans and Democrats calling for embracing a tougher posture vis-a-vis Beijing. That position reflects the sentiments of the American public as well as the business community, and is seen as a response to the rising nationalist posture projected by the Chinese leadership, including its policies in Hong Kong and towards its Uyghur Muslim population, military operations in the South China Sea, alleged cyberattacks, efforts to expand its global technological base, and challenges to the independence of Taiwan.

From that geo-strategic perspective, it's becoming clear that the tensions between China and the US will continue and perhaps even accelerate and dominate international relations in the coming years. It is a reality that US partners, particularly in Asia, would have to contend with. Yet it's not inevitable, as some warn, that the Sino-American rivalry should evolve into a new costly cold war, or under the worst-case-scenario into a full-blown military conflict. And there is no reason why the friction between them over trade and other economic issues could not be managed more effectively.