What could the United States do to improve relations with China?
Much of US-China strategic tension is over regional leadership–whether the disputes in the region will be resolved the way the Washington wants or the way China wants, and whether China will take over from the United States as the main rule maker and enforcer. There is a serious argument that the United States should withdraw from its current regional leadership role (closing its military bases and ending its alliances and security partnerships in the region) as a way of assuring China that America welcomes China’s “rise.” This, the argument goes, would remove much of China’s insecurity and leave the two countries with little to clash over. The danger of this approach, however, is that it would leave America’s regional friends at the mercy of China and abdicate America’s opportunity to shape the affairs of an important region to safeguard US prosperity and security.
