Stabilizing U.S.-China relations remains one of the top items on President-elect Biden’s agenda for 2021, but in order to do so mutual trust and cooperation must be restored. The incoming administration should seek to revive cultural, educational, and people-to-people exchange in order to repair the years’ worth of structural damage.

U.S. strategic goals – and the corresponding means of implementing them – will differ considerably under the Biden administration. With Biden’s stated position of willingness to use military force to protect American interests, he may present a challenge to world peace.

While pursuing cautious containment, the U.S. will want to avoid major military frictions. Biden may re-emphasize the role of military exchanges with China, which will create opportunities for military dialogue and exchanges at all levels.

The incoming Biden administration has every incentive to repair relations with China, but the biggest obstacle, more so than Trump’s actions or public opinion, may be Biden’s own election cycle rhetoric.

The new U.S. president will adjust the country’s China policy, but the general approach — which reflects the mainstream views of American voters — is not likely to change. What will change is the manner in which U.S. policy is carried out, and here there is uncertainty.

When Joe Biden moves into the White House, his geopolitical signals will be closely watched by China, whose rise in the western Pacific is a historical necessity. Yet even a softer U.S. will try to undermine it, especially with nations that nurse maritime disputes.

There’s no evidence indicating that U.S.-China relations will turn for the better simply because Biden takes over the presidency. But the opposite is true as well: There is no reason to pass up an opportunity to ease tensions and strive for a reset.

U.S. President Donald Trump has suffered a decisive loss in his trade war with China. It is now in the interest of both countries to speedily resume trade and investment cooperation, cooperate to end the COVID-19 threat and implement the Paris climate accord.

A strong framework needs to be built in which China and the United States can operate together with little ambiguity. The two countries are currently positioned to benefit the world, if only they are willing to seize the moment.