Clearly, despite the San Francisco summit, US-China ties have yet to thaw. Marked by profound mistrust, the relationship continues to be defined by competition, rather than cooperation.
Meanwhile, the crises in Ukraine and Gaza persist with no foreseeable resolution. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has reached out to President Xi about a proposed peace summit, while leaders in the Arab world are open to Beijing’s help to broker a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. China has declared its commitment to leverage its influence to facilitate a resolution to both crises.
Unfortunately, Washington still sees China as a threat to its global dominance. During his call, Biden cautioned Xi against escalating tensions across the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea. Separately, several Republicans have called for America’s withdrawal from the Ukraine war to reallocate military assets towards countering purported rising threats from China.
Herein lies the paradox confronting China as it considers taking on a mediating role. Why would Beijing mediate for peace in Europe and the Middle East when this would free the US to pivot towards the Asia-Pacific to oppose China?
At the San Francisco summit last year, Xi and Biden struck a deal wherein Beijing agreed to limit the export of fentanyl precursor chemicals, and Biden reciprocated by easing some of its sanctions. The transaction underscores Xi’s insistence on a fundamental principle of cooperation: the quid pro quo expectation.
Like any other party, Beijing anticipates reciprocity for its help. Therefore, if the US seeks China’s collaboration in addressing the Ukraine and Gaza crises, it must reciprocate by mitigating the risk of open conflict in the Asia-Pacific.
Despite Xi’s commitment, however, experts doubt that restrictions on precursor exports alone can effectively curb the US opioid epidemic. This scepticism arises from the recognition that multiple factors fuel the American narcotic addiction, including inadequate regulation and weak oversight leading to over-prescription, pharmaceutical companies’ aggressive marketing strategies and socioeconomic distress.
11:28
Unravelling China’s role in the US fentanyl crisis
Unravelling China’s role in the US fentanyl crisis
The opioid crisis is a symptom of an ailing America haunted by fear. The nation, deeply divided, is wrestling with crises rooted in racial, religious and socioeconomic disparities. Adding to these complexities is the trepidation that adversaries like China could capitalise on these vulnerabilities.
Indeed, mired in a bitter rivalry, the US and China find themselves trapped in a cycle of distrust, where actions by one often reinforce suspicions in the other. In the US, this escalating mistrust has stoked apprehensions about China’s allegedly widening array of threats to homeland security.
02:37
Six presumed dead after Singapore-flagged cargo ship topples Baltimore bridge
Six presumed dead after Singapore-flagged cargo ship topples Baltimore bridge
The spotlight on TikTok’s potential impact on the 2024 US presidential election is also diverting attention from more critical issues plaguing America’s increasingly fragile democracy.
The reality is that America is deeply polarised, and the election is unlikely to mend its fractured social fabric. Should Donald Trump secure victory in the November presidential election, he has vowed retribution for his enemies. If he faces defeat, the possibility of another uprising akin to the January 6 Capitol riot cannot be dismissed.
How long can the Democrats hold back America’s far-right tide?
Merely focusing on external threats will not resolve the profound issues vexing America. The origin of these problems is intrinsic to the US and demand internal solutions, necessitating a critical process of self-reflection and self-correction.
On the global stage, the era of US unipolarity as the sole superpower has ended. China is playing an increasingly influential role in reshaping the world order into a more inclusive, multipolar one. However, the US persists in viewing China as a challenge to the universal principle of rights and liberty. This fixation on the China threat is deflecting attention from the real and present dangers to world peace, notably the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, which risk escalating into broader regional conflicts.
The mistrust between the US and China ultimately has far-reaching consequences for humankind, undermining our collective ability to respond effectively to the pressing challenges posed by climate change and the potential risks associated with AI.
The US urgently needs to adopt a more balanced assessment of China. Neglecting to do so risks complicating efforts to resolve America’s domestic predicaments, disrupting the reconfiguration of the world order, and leaving us vulnerable to global crises that could adversely affect the fate of humanity.
Peter T.C. Chang is a research associate at the Institute of China Studies, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
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