Tensions between the United States and China are rising, leading to talk of a new Cold War. Experts see significant historical differences - but believe the two forces are entering dangerous territory.
The administration of US President Donald Trump has gone global against China, prompting other countries to reject its wired aid and telecommunications title Huawei, and Beijing’s rivals have been reckless in the disputed South China Sea Siding‌.
As head of China in the November election, Trump made a big campaign an issue, but if he does not lose at the hands of President John Biden, the relationship is unlikely to change beyond tone.
Stephen Walt, a professor of international affairs at Harvard University, said the world's two largest economic powers were engaged in a long-running rivalry over a "volatile strategic vision", including China's desire to dominate Asia.
He said China saw Trump as a "weak and flawed leader" and that the US response to the coronavirus pandemic was "destructive" to demonstrate its suppression of profits.
"It's similar to the US-Soviet 'Cold War' in some respects, but it's not as dangerous as before," Walt said.
"One important difference is that although the relationship is now in considerable tension, the two states are still economically close."
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompey, who has been issuing stern warnings about Beijing around the world, did not rule out comparisons with the Cold War in a recent radio interview.
He said the United States had never interfered financially with the Soviet Union - hence the need for the West to secede from China, especially Washington, fearing for its technology, Go ion action.
- 'Hot War' Opportunity -
Flying Skylar Maestro, an assistant professor at Georgetown University and a scholar living at the American Enterprise Institute, said it was dangerous to talk about the Cold War with China.
"The situation with China is not like the Cold War," she said.
"On the positive side, we have a broader engagement. On the negative side, there is a real possibility of a somewhat heated war between the two sides that has never been with the Soviet Union."
She said the use of the Cold War lens could lead to ineffective reactions in which Washington sees Beijing as a ideological threat.
Maestro said China has a lot of options to address U.S. concerns such as the withdrawal of the arms system in the South China Sea.
"But Beijing will not do that because it fundamentally misunderstands the drivers of US policy. It thinks the US is reacting to a decline in its power - the US will whip whatever Beijing does," he said. .
"So there is no intention to moderate their ambitions and try to achieve them. This is a mistake. And China has failed to do so. When trying to reassure America, we must go to war. It can be taken."
- Severe hardening -
In an innings a few years ago, American businesses that considered intellectual property theft were rarely asking for an intensification.
David Stillwell, East Asia's top foreign ministry official, said he had identified Beijing as a U.S. defense briefcase, and that China had responded to the "demonstration and concerted action."
At a recent Think Tank event, he said, "Personally I belong to a school where I can work with these people. But my epiphany came 10 years ago."
The U.S. has also cracked down on Chinese threats in Hong Kong and large-scale violence against Uyghur Muslims, each time retaliating by Beijing.
Trump still hopes to secure a trade deal with China, which has promised to increase purchases of American goods before the coronovirus epidemic.
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