While U.S. President Joe Biden’s Asia trip didn’t include China, Secretary of State Antony Blinken filled in some of the missing pieces in the puzzle of America’s Indo-Pacific diplomacy. His recent speech can be seen as a prelude to America’s long-delayed national security strategy.

Antony Blinken may have coined the term “asymmetric decoupling” in his recent speech on the Biden administration’s China policy. The formerly abstract term seems to be the perfect way to describe China’s goal of becoming independent from the West while increasing the West’s dependence on China, a strategy that dates back to Emperor Qianlong’s time.

The Biden administration’s leadership failure is the net effect of Capitol Hill’s revolving door politics. The White House is not in charge. The Big Defense is.

The United States does not rule out cooperation with China on particular issues, but the prominence of cooperation in principle has dropped significantly. Indications are that areas of possible cooperation are narrowing and the difficulty is increasing.

If the United States and China went into armed conflict, it would be ruinous for both nations. The two governments must work together to find common ground, address arising issues, including tensions with Taiwan, and prevent war.

With President Joe Biden’s Asia tour and recent remarks by Secretary of State Antony Blinken, the United States has begun putting a Cold War notion into practice once again. But what has failed in the past will not likely succeed in the future.

There was nothing new revealed in the U.S. president’s visit, other than launching Indo-Pacific Economic Framework. Roping in Japan and South Korea and declaring that the U.S. would “intervene” in a Taiwan conflict, all amounted to old news.

The U.S. secretary of state restated and reinforced the Biden administration’s approach, proposing an “invest, align, compete” strategy for success over China. The speech revealed significant clues about the features of America’s basic strategic game ahead.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken delivered his speech on the Biden administration’s approach to China last week. While he laid out a laundry list of China-U.S. policy issues, the administration must now actively fashion an integrated strategy to deal with the ongoing challenges presented by Beijing.

Multiple factors are preventing the United States from unveiling a clear position. Uncertainties in domestic politics, the conflict in Ukraine, an alleged China-Russia axis and the Taiwan issue all factor in. The U.S. is at a foreign policy crossroads in a complex environment.