Can the US and China forge a rivalry of convenience?
Deteriorating
China-US relations are often blamed on the two countries' different political and economic systems. However, building on the commonalities of the strategic objectives of Chinese President
Xi Jinping and US President
Donald Trump may offer a path to improved relations. The path forward is relatively wide and multifaceted in terms of geopolitical concerns but narrower in terms of trade and economic issues.
Both leaders seek a new world order that offers different roles for their countries. For Trump, this means shedding America's obligations to provide global public goods and ostensibly focusing more on US domestic interests. Xi, meanwhile, wants to preserve a rules-based global economic system in which China has prospered but seeks a greater say in its management.
Trump's obsession with
exercising leverage to strike deals involves threatening allies, who are more susceptible to pressure than America's perceived enemies due to their reliance on the US for security and economic support.
Washington's disruptive behaviour provides
an opening for Beijing regarding global leadership, but Beijing is still developing its soft power skills and lacks the financial and military resources to make this a near-term reality.
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