New Cold War: The Sino-American Rivalry

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One of the central elements in the confrontation between China and the United States is their economic rivalry. The infographic on Sino-American trade shows a spectacular increase in American imports from China. This has led the US to adopt protectionist measures, particularly under Donald Trump, who has unleashed a trade war by raising tariffs on many Chinese products.

This economic opposition is reminiscent of the Cold War, when the US and the USSR clashed over blockades and economic sanctions. At the time, the USSR was an alternative model to American capitalism, proposing a planned economy in opposition to the market economy. Today, although China is officially communist, it adopts a hybrid economic strategy, combining state capitalism and centralized control, enabling it to compete directly with the United States
2. Strong ideological and political opposition

The press article on the US withdrawal from the WHO illustrates another dimension of the rivalry between Washington and Beijing: the war for influence over global governance. In leaving the WHO, Trump accused the organization of being too close to Beijing, reinforcing the idea of a clash between two worldviews.

What's more, the caricature of the evolution of Sino-American relations shows that tensions are nothing new: after a rapprochement under Nixon in the 1970s, mistrust has returned to the fore, notably with the recent crises surrounding Hong Kong, Xinjiang and Taiwan. The United States regularly denounces human rights abuses in China, while Beijing criticizes American imperialism and its interventions around the world.

During the Cold War, this type of ideological confrontation was commonplace: the United States presented itself as the defender of the free world in the face of Soviet authoritarianism. Today, a similar dynamic is taking shape with China, which is seeking to impose its own model of governance.

3. Growing military and technological mistrust

Finally, an excerpt from an American political speech evokes the Chinese threat in the military and technological fields. Tensions in the South China Sea, where Beijing lays claim to strategic territories, are reminiscent of Cold War friction zones such as Berlin and Cuba. What's more, the United States is trying to limit Chinese influence by banning certain companies, such as Huawei, for fear of espionage and technological dependence.

All of which goes to show that tensions between China and the United States resemble a new Cold War, with opposition on several fronts: economic, ideological, military and technological.