Some quick wins are needed in the US-China relationship

While Donald Trump’s young presidency has had a flurry of activity relating to foreign relations, noticeably absent has been substantive outreach to China.

One reason for this delay was his questioning of the One China policy, a matter that required resolution before Beijing was to move forward on any issue involving Washington. This issue was sorted out during the president’s Feb. 9 phone call with Chinese President Xi Jinping in which he rightly agreed that the U.S. would honor the policy.

{mosads}Other reasons for the delay involve the priority the White House placed in shoring up relationships with allies (the U.K., Japan, South Korea and Israel) and pressing domestic and political matters, i.e., immigration, Judge Neil Gorsuch’s Supreme Court nomination, healthcare and tax reform and controversies involving the resignation of National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, intelligence leaks and relations with Moscow, among other issues.

Yet, unmistakably, the distrust that Trump’s team harbors towards Beijing relating to security and trade matters cloud the uninitiated relationship between the new U.S. administration and China, contributing to the hold-up in both countries moving forward. 

At present, there are disagreements between Washington and Beijing involving assertions of sovereignty in the South China Sea as well as tensions involving trade, commercial relations, cyber warfare and espionage, geopolitics and the recent installation of the U.S. Army’s anti-ballistic missile system in South Korea.  

Adding to the tensions, during his presidential campaign candidate Trump accused Beijing of inventing global warming as a hoax and of being a currency manipulator who trades unfairly. China, for its part, has criticized American interference in other countries’ internal affairs and has denounced the U.S. for militarizing the South China Sea and for trying to contain China, impeding its rise. 

As it begins its second month in office, the Trump administration would benefit by pursuing the following quick wins in its relations with Beijing for purposes of getting U.S.-China relations off to a productive start and for building the trust necessary to work on the major issues of contention affecting both countries and the region: 

S&ED: A good first move would be for the Trump administration to continue the yearly U.S.–China Strategic and Economic Dialogue started by the George W. Bush administration and built upon by the Obama administration. This annual summit discusses a wide range of strategic and economic issues facing both countries covering defense, trade, climate change, energy, fiscal policy, counterterrorism, non-proliferation and regional geopolitical challenges. Forging ahead with this yearly opportunity for high-level meetings will send a reassuring signal to Beijing that Trump, contrary to common assumptions, is earnest about the U.S. and China continuing discussions on key areas of interest.  

State Visits: State visits by Xi to Washington and Trump to Beijing will go beyond the normal symbolism and pageantry of these events and help demonstrate that Washington and Beijing, despite their very real differences and mounting strains, are not about to fall into war and are committed to working together. In some instances, the personal rapport built between leaders during state visits goes beyond the normal fashion and plants the seeds of working relationships that allow for progress or, at the very least, a de-escalation of tensions. 

North Korea: North Korea’s advances towards weaponizing an intercontinental ballistic missile with a nuclear warhead demonstrate the rising urgency of the threat and the need for Washington and Beijing to work together towards a resolution. Working together on realizing a diplomatic breakthrough would be ideal. On the other hand, if the menace of Pyongyang needs to be resolved by force of arms, Washington and Beijing must work with Seoul to arrive at agreed parameters for military operations as well as needed measures following a collapse of Kim Jon-un’s regime. The various post-regime considerations include joint efforts towards securing nuclear, chemical and biological weapons stockpiles, restoring order, liberating gulags, staving off famine and providing shelter and medical care to refugees. While these discussions will not lend themselves towards a quick resolution of the North Korean crisis, Washington and Beijing would be well served to begin the process and get off on the right footing. 

Shifting Mindsets: Without question, relations between the U.S. and China are worryingly strained. Miscalculations by either country can take disputes to a new level or, at worst, result in hostilities. To defuse tensions, a shift in mindsets is in order. 

Efforts should be made to negotiate trade, currency disputes and commercial relations to mutually beneficial outcomes. President Trump’s often self-touted negotiating skills ought to come in handy here, presumably. 

Other challenges reflecting the different values of both regimes, such as human rights, might be irreconcilable and therefore changes will only occur if the nature or principles of either government changes. 

And yet the other seemingly intractable disagreements – maritime sovereignty claims and militarization activities in the South China Sea, geopolitical feuds (Iran, Syria), etc. – may require an agreement to disagree for the time being accompanied by a commitment to maintain open lines of communication and to arrive at an eventual common understanding in the years to come. 

This we know: China is not going anywhere, nor is the United States. Both of these countries have the means and smarts to avoid the feared “Thucydides Trap” scenario of war resulting when a rising power causes fear in an established power. The question is whether or not Washington and Beijing have the will to arrive at an accommodation, an accommodation resulting in some form of coexistence in the Asia Pacific. 

Changes of leadership afford new opportunities. The new Trump administration and Xi have an opportunity to set U.S.-China relations on a constructive foundation with a few quick wins. 

Ted Gover, Ph.D. is Instructor of Political Science at Central Texas College, U.S. Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton​, California​.

The views expressed by contributors are their own and are not the views of The Hill.