This approach, while prudent, requires China to turn the other cheek and to avoid tensions and frictions with the US. This general stance in global politics irritates many hardliners who are becoming more restless and less tolerant of avoiding a problem with what they see as a big global bully.
It is too early to tell the ultimate motivations behind Beijing's most recent displays of displeasure with the US -- whether or not these are part of a larger pattern that marks a substantial shift in behavior or rather these are further proof of a lack of consensus at the top.
What is certain, however, is that the US will continue to play an indispensible role as both economic and security guarantor in the Asia-Pacific.
Washington must not let strategic challenges in the Middle East undermine its ability to deal with complex strategic challenges in Asia. The manifest challenge of US policy towards China in the near term will be to provide clear incentives for continuing Chinese cooperation in the complex international arena that lies ahead.
Kurt Campbell is chief executive officer and cofounder of the Center for a New American Security in Washington. Nirav Patel is a research associate specializing in Asian affairs.
RSS