The United States-China Mutually Assured Distrust

Abstract

The 21st century geopolitical developments in East Asia have placed the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in a
prime position to play a major role in the complexities of Asia-Pacific politics. China is a rising power, but whether
it is going to be a status quo power or a challenging one remains to be seen. With the world’s largest population, the
world second economy and a modernizing military force, China theoretically has room to have a say in the revision
of the security order in East Asia, which has been dominated so far by an already controversial Cold War alliance
between the United States and Japan and a new American pivot to Asia since former President Obama announced his
new Asia strategy in Canberra in November 2011.
As China’s prowess grows, so do percolating challenges to U.S. prominence in the region. The gap between what
China intends to do with accumulating power and how it is perceived in Asia and the West alike has created what
this article calls China’s trust dilemma with the United States.
The distrust between Beijing and Washington has ostensibly plagued their relationship and may continue to dominate
their interaction for the unforeseeable future; an interaction between an already established world hegemon and a
rising regional player that is allegedly aspiring to challenge and even replace its rival, at least in Asia for the time
being.
As this article seeks to study the implications of the rise of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as a world power
and the trust dilemma China’s rising might is incurring, this work,in its attempt to fathom Beijing’s strategic intents,
adopts the security dilemma framework whichrefers to a situation wherein two states may be drawn into conflict,
possibly even war, over security concerns, even though none of them actually seeks confrontation.