It is crucial to prepare for all-out China-U.S. competition. The country that can best demonstrate wisdom, willpower and courage will have the advantage over time, and new cooperation models may alter the trajectory of history.

The heightened tensions between the U.S. and China are here to stay until both sides can reach common ground - which may have to begin in literal form in locations that both sides can send representatives to dialogue over critical issues.

Western advocates of a renewed standoff between great powers are blinded by their biases, as China’s rise goes beyond Western experience. At a time of deep economic interdependence and with weapons unimaginable in the past, who can guarantee that a confrontation would not escalate out of control?

Historically, the United States has made many strategic blunders based on misguided thinking — and people have paid a heavy price. If America’s current misjudgments about itself are coupled with competitive hostility toward China, it may sink into a new quagmire.

A recent substack post from American muckraker Seymour Hersh blames the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipeline on the Biden White House and CIA. And Chinese and Russian media can’t get enough. Alternatively, U.S. media has been hyper fixated on the Chinese spy balloon incident for weeks. Are both sides playing down truths to keep diplomacy alive? Only time will tell.

While both China and the U.S. share blame in the increasing tensions between the two nations, it’s imperative that Presidents Biden and Xi find a way to rescue the relationship. Stateside, U.S. officials should seek support across the political spectrum to put a floor under American policy toward the PRC, as well the bilateral relationship.

Early February’s row over the Chinese balloon exposed the sorry state of affairs that is U.S.-China relations in a highly visible and alarming fashion. The fallout from the incident puts what was a period of relative calm in jeopardy, and will certainly affect exchanges in the near future for the worse.

The recent balloon incident will likely ensure that Sino-American relations will remain poor for many months, and looking at past incidents could shed light on the challenges of soon overcoming the crisis.

The potential transfers of lethal military materiel from China to Russia is a deeply concerning possibility. If it were to occur, there would be fierce reactions from the United States and Europe—and China’s relations with both would further deteriorate. There would also be global consequences, as the world might bifurcate into two competing blocs and a new global Cold War may begin.

Paradoxically, last year set a record for trade between China and the United States, notwithstanding hostilities. But while the internal dynamics for economic interaction and trade remain resilient for now, some analysts see clouds on the horizon.