CRITICAL CONCERNS FROM EAST TO WEST
It is obvious from all this that the US is positioning itself to ensure that it would be able to curtail China’s rise. But China presents a dilemma to the US, which is why you cannot see Chinese-US relations through the lenses of the Cold War as it just does not make sense. Why do I say this? It is not a Cold War type situation. Why? Because China and the US are also actively interacting with one another. It did not happen during the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the US. But now you have active interaction between the US and China and at the same time there is a tussle for power and influence between the two. In other words, the US wants to contain China but at the same time it has to interact with and engage China. This engagement is taking place at all levels and in different ways. The visit of Michelle Obama and her daughters to China is one example. The chief of the Chinese Armed Forces is meeting up with the top General in the US, Martin Dempsey, in Washington DC. The US cannot help but interact with China. Just as China cannot help but interact with the US. The US cannot cut itself off from China for a very obvious reason. Why? Because of trade, investments but mostly because China holds so much of US Treasury Bills as the US is the biggest debtor nation on earth with a debt of US$ 17.5 trillion. The Chinese meanwhile need US technology. If they want to develop, if they want to grow, they need US technology. So the interaction will continue, which is why we are confronted with an extraordinary situation today. On the part of the US, the need to contain but also at the same time the need to engage. Let me now look at China. China’s relations with Southeast Asia. China has interacted with South East Asia
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