The United States does not have a coherent trade policy. It has a political strategy masquerading as trade policy that has taken dead aim at China. Unsurprisingly, China has responded in kind. With the two superpowers drawing on their allies for support – the US leaning on the G7 and China turning to the Global South – economic decoupling is the least of our problems.

While high officials in the Biden administration — and President Joe Biden himself — have repeatedly proclaimed that America does not seek to decouple from China, the latest move to impose extreme tariffs on certain Chinese goods goes in exactly that direction. It’s a bad idea driven by U.S. election year politics.

The negative strategic narratives concocted by the United States to constrain China are increasingly taking on more offensive, instrumental and purposeful dimensions. They are slipping steadily toward more confrontational and perilous frameworks, much to the detriment of normalcy and peace.

The U.S. secretary of state’s visit to China epitomizes the challenge for the Biden administration in an election year. It seeks to stabilize relations with China but at the same time wants to flex its muscles. This poses a complex challenge for China as it interacts with the United States.

The renewal of high-level Sino-U.S. exchanges along with the approaching American elections has intensified the U.S. debate about an optimal long-term strategy toward China.

Although it’s still early, China is referenced heavily in political rhetoric and is a top target of candidates. Washington is suffused with an atmosphere geopolitical contention. Distorted images of China and emerging hawkish policies have undermined goodwill in bilateral relations. China needs to prepare for any outcome in November.

When US Secretary of State Antony Blinken recently visited Beijing in an effort to stabilize relations with China, many of the issues that he discussed with Chinese President Xi Jinping were highly contentious. For example, Blinken warned China against providing materials and technology to aid Russia in its war against Ukraine, and he objected to China’s territorial claims in the South China Sea and harassment of the Philippines (a United States ally). Other disputes concerned interpretations of America’s “one-China” policy toward Taiwan, and US trade and export controls on the flow of technology to China.

The US-China rivalry is the most dominant aspect of 21st-century geopolitics, significantly impacting the world. It has expanded across various fields and geographies. The Gulf region, which was mainly absorbing the geopolitical heat of this rivalry, has also witnessed it in the technological sphere, especially artificial intelligence (AI). Two larger projects, G42 in the UAE and the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in Saudi Arabia, are particularly notable.

Talking, even through hard times, is not only necessary but also meaningful, because the audience is wider than just the two participants. People are listening at the bilateral, regional and global levels.

The United States doesn’t hesitate to pressure countries and international organizations to side with it and to isolate Russia. However, it has been unable to persuade China to follow suit. Here’s why.