Amid still strained China-US relations, the visit of White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan to Beijing represents a pivotal moment. His engagement with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi could lay the groundwork for a high-stakes meeting between President Xi Jinping and President Joe Biden later this year. However, this diplomatic effort goes beyond bilateral ties; it is a critical step toward safeguarding global stability and sustaining world economic growth amid turbulent times.
The US-China relationship has been severely strained by chaotic trade wars, technology sanctions and tensions in the South China Sea and Taiwan. These conflicts have escalated rhetoric and actions that threaten not only regional security but also the global economic order. Sullivan’s visit acknowledges the urgent need for both sides to stabilize their relationship, particularly as the world grapples with the aftermath of a global pandemic and ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza.
A significant issue in US-China relations is the tragically misguided perception in Washington and throughout the West that China’s rise poses an existential threat. This zero-sum mentality overlooks the potential for a win-win outcome, where both nations, and indeed the whole world, can benefit.
China’s rise over the past four decades is a story of unprecedented economic growth, driven by nation-building, infrastructure modernization, entrepreneurship, and relentless technological innovation. Unlike past global powers that rose through military conquest and colonialism, China has focused on peaceful development and global competitiveness.
Former US president Jimmy Carter highlighted this distinction in a widely publicized 2019 conversation with then-president Donald Trump, noting that China has not engaged in wars since 1979, unlike the US, which had had only 16 years of peace in its then-242-year history. Carter suggested that China’s breakneck economic growth was facilitated by sensible investment and a focus on peace — offering a different model of progress that should not be met with automatic suspicion or hostility by the West.
Stable US-China relations are essential not just for the two nations involved but for the entire world. The global economy is intricately linked, and any significant disruption in the relationship between the world’s two largest economies can have far-reaching consequences. A stable and cooperative US-China relationship can foster global economic growth, address transnational challenges like climate change and poverty, and contribute to international peace and security.
Moreover, China’s development model — characterized by strong leadership, entrepreneurship, inclusive economic growth and continuous innovation — demonstrates that there are multiple paths to prosperity. The US and its allies should recognize that the world is large enough for multiple centers of influence, and the rise of one power does not necessitate the decline of another.
As for the meeting in Beijing, the world is watching to see if the two countries can chart a course toward more stable relations. Both nations have much to gain from cooperation and much to lose from conflict. It is imperative that leaders on both sides approach this relationship with a pragmatic mindset of mutual benefit rather than emotional rivalry.
The US has an opportunity to lead by example, engaging China constructively rather than confrontationally. This mindset, advocated by former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger, former US president Jimmy Carter, and Asian statesmen like Singapore’s founding father, Lee Kuan Yew, requires shifting from viewing the world as a battlefield of competing powers to seeing it as a shared space where all nations can thrive.
Singaporean diplomat and intellectual Kishore Mahbubani has long advised the West on the importance of engaging China wisely. He warns that the West must decide whether it wants to deal with a happy, rising dragon or risk creating an angry one.
Mahbubani recalls the quote often attributed to Napoleon: “Don’t wake the sleeping dragon, China, because if you do, it’s going to shake the world.” He suggests that while the US once engaged China effectively during the Cold War, recent policies aimed at containing China — such as tariffs, chip restrictions and sanctions — risk waking an angry dragon. Mahbubani questions whether the West has fully considered the consequences of this negative approach. He argues that Asia, in particular, should be wary of the West’s efforts to contain and provoke China, as the region will bear the brunt of any resulting conflict. “When the angry dragon is woken up, the US may one day sail away and say, ‘I’m going to go home. I don’t care what happens.’ Who’s left to deal with the angry dragon? We are,” Mahbubani warns. He urges Asian leaders to speak out and temper the forces trying to create unnecessary conflict.
Sullivan’s visit to Beijing is more than just another diplomatic meeting — it is a critical moment in managing one of the world’s most important bilateral relationships. The stability of US-China ties is vital for global stability and economic growth. By adopting a win-win mindset and recognizing the potential for peaceful coexistence, the US and China can lead the world toward a future where all nations have the opportunity to flourish.
This is not merely a matter of bilateral interest between the two largest economies in the world; it is a necessity for ensuring global stability in an increasingly interconnected and unstable world. The stakes are high, and the time for wise, forward-thinking leadership is now.
The author is an award-winning columnist with the Philippine Star and Abante, an economics and politics analyst, college teacher, and moderator on the Pandesal Forum.
The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.
