Introduction

Chapter 3 provided both a conceptual and chronological account of US and Chinese grand strategies. It showed that while the drivers of both vectors have caused much friction over the decades, since 1972, there has also been a marriage of convenience between Washington and Beijing. Coherent with the idea of coopetition presented in Chapter 2, Chapter 3 then continued with a history of US– China relations from rapprochement until the very early days of the Obama administration. One of the main takeaway points from this historical inquiry was that both the US and China were able to overcome serious challenges to the relationship in the name of a pragmatism informed by national and global economic interests. This chronological account went up to the end of the 2000s.

In contrast to Chapter 3, this and the following chapter proceed more thematically and less chronologically. In this way, it will be possible to capture some key developments that define US– China relations in the 2010s and that signal a shift from the previous decades – at least compared to the first 20 years that followed the Cold War. Given that this book contributes to current debates in international politics as opposed to history- focused discussions, this allows a more in- depth approach to some of the key issues. The historical part of the previous chapter provided the context to current events, drawing out the implications of the economy– security conundrum (ESC); the aim was to make sense of current developments, as did Chapters 1 and 2.

Reflecting on US– China relations, Joseph Nye wrote in the Financial Times that ‘[e] conomic exchange can produce welfare gains for both sides, but it can also be used as a strategic weapon’ (Nye 2020b). His words capture the message of this chapter. For the sake of clarity, it is important to note that a comprehensive study on the economic interdependence between the US and China is beyond the scope of this book. There are three interrelated reasons for this. Firstly, an in- depth exploration of this relationship would require an economic focus that is too technical for the book's area of interest, which remains a more IR- related one.