The US–China relationship is “more strained than it has ever been at any other point in the 21st century”, according to the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), which published its latest Asia-Pacific Regional Security Assessment on Wednesday.
Tensions between Washington and Beijing over issues such as trade, technology and Taiwan were setting the tone of a relationship characterised by “deep mutual distrust and a lack of dialogue mechanisms”, the report said.
It noted some tactical improvements during the previous Biden administration, such as the resumption of military-to-military dialogue and an agreement not to include artificial intelligence in nuclear decision-making, but cautioned that these were unlikely to “significantly alter the strategic direction of the two great powers” during Trump’s second term in office.
“Trump’s first term [2017-2021] saw the US launch its first Indo-Pacific strategy in 2017, which made clear that the region had become a priority for Washington. Central to this strategy was an acknowledgement that Chinese coercion and influence undermined the interests of the US and countries in the Asia-Pacific,” the report said.
