[Salon] The United States should seek to thaw relations with China

[Chas Freeman <cwfresidence@gmail.com>]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/letters-to-the-editor/the-united-states-should-seek-to-thaw-relations-with-china/2021/11/21/c1757fb8-4972-11ec-beca-3cc7103bd814_story.html

Opinion: The United States should seek to thaw relations with China

The Nov. 18 editorial “The ‘competition’ with China” expressed support for President Biden’s recent virtual meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping but warned that Mr. Biden should “not take the bait” in pursuing a broader thaw in relations. To “prevail” in this competition with China, the United States “will need to keep faith with its allies,” it concluded.

Clinging to an undefined fantasy — “prevailing ”— obscures the actual nature of the challenge created by China’s rise and serves to dangerously mislead the American public. The United States should stand firm on some questions, such as Beijing’s use of coercive tactics to target dissidents beyond its borders, but trying to outmuscle China in every domain until its national will effectively breaks will end disastrously. 

This is particularly true on military issues: The only way to achieve long-term peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific is to slow down the region’s rapid militarization, which some have said is turning it into a “powder keg.” In other words, the only truly relevant question is where and how to bring about a long-term “thaw” with China consistent with our values and the security of our friends and allies. All else is a self-indulgent distraction.

Ethan Paul, Washington

The writer is a research associate and reporter for the Quincy Institute­
for Responsible Statecraft.