The ‘Chinese Dream’ or the ‘American Nightmare’: Where Did the U.S.-China Relations Come in Three Decades
https://doi.org/10.46272/2587-8476-2021-12-2-12-30
Abstract
The bulk of academic studies characterize the contemporary U.S. – China relations as asymmetrical ones, in which the relations' agenda − a course towards finding areas of cooperation or emphasizing contradictions/rivalry − was set by Washington's policy towards China, with the latter being more of a reacting party. In this paper, I argue that one needs a further and deeper reflection on the current confrontation between the U.S. and China, in particular the reasons and circumstances of how and why the “Chinese dream” of a remarkable renaissance of the Chinese nation became an American nightmare, forcing Washington to opt for a containment policy against China. In this regard, I show the importance of tracing the dynamics of the post-Cold War development of the U.S. – China relations to comprehend the patterns and logic of the shaping of American policy towards China. The article also explains the evolution of U.S. – China relations in the post-Cold War period as determined by the presence or absence of a strategic basis in the U.S. – China relations, which implies cooperation between the two countries in stopping the external existential threat to the U.S. So, I conclude that the uniqueness of the current stage lies in the fact that, because of China's emergence as a strong global power and Washington's disillusions about China, China itself is beginning to be perceived by Washington as an existential threat, to stop which the containment policy should be applied.
Supporting agencies: SPbSU
About the Author
Y. V. Leksyutina
Saint-Petersburg State University
Russian Federation
Competing Interests:
Russian Federation
Yana V. Leksyutina, Doctor of Sciences, Professor of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Professor, Saint-Petersburg State University
7/9, Universitetskaya Emb., Saint-Petersburg 199034
Competing Interests:
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.
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Review
For citations:
Leksyutina Y.V. The ‘Chinese Dream’ or the ‘American Nightmare’: Where Did the U.S.-China Relations Come in Three Decades. Journal of International Analytics. 2021;12(2):12-30. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.46272/2587-8476-2021-12-2-12-30
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