Could the sparks of today’s Cold War with China start a conventional or nuclear war? With a militaristic American president, a looming U.S. election, and a slowing Chinese economy, the threat of war seems to be is looming.

The United States and China may now be in Cold War 2.0, but the first Cold War has a number of useful lessons that must be heeded in order to avoid Sino-American relations spiraling out of control.

A desirable prospect for future China-U.S. relations is that rational deliberations prevail and the two parties formulate a stable relationship of “coopetition.” Unfortunately, the current U.S. administration has little interest in moving in that direction.

Recently published in the National Review, “China Unquarantined” is little more than an unfounded, incendiary cheat-sheet to remind Republicans to stay on message and speak in unison.

If the ideas of extreme partisans like Steve Bannon were to come to pass, the world would be a more dangerous place. For the U.S., decoupling would mean a complete reorganization its East Asian industrial chains. This nonsense needs to stop.

Unlike the Cold War between the West and the USSR, a US-China cold war is unlikely, given the fact that China is heavily integrated in the global economy and that people-to-people exchange remains high.

As China continues to challenge the U.S., Washington should avoid engaging in inflammatory actions and rhetoric that will undermine its international presence and ultimately empower Beijing.

Trump’s inclusion of guests of honor looks a lot like an attempt to encircle China. Worries about a “new cold war” between China and the U.S. are not unfounded, as progress is being whittled away.

The coronavirus pandemic deflated President Trump’s touted trade deal, as data suggests that Beijing will likely fail to meet key commitments due to suppressed global demand. If coronavirus kills the US-China trade deal, other political and economic disagreements could escalate the US-China rivalry into a potential Cold War.

The stability that was expected from the signing of the Phase One trade deal is now a distant reality in the wake of COVID-19. The U.S. and China are entangled in blame games and trade disputes, setting the stage for further, more devastating escalation.