The Contradictions of US China Policy

Abstract

The United States has a bipartisan China policy. Despite rhetorical differences, both parties support a two-pronged policy of “congagement” and reassuring America’s regional allies. Congagement combines military containment with economic engagement. Reassurance attempts to convince American allies in the region that America will act as the ultimate guarantor of those states’ security. These two policies pose problems for the country and, by extension, the US Air Force. The economic engagement policy has helped China narrow the relative power gap with the United States, thereby fueling Beijing’s regional ambitions. As Beijing’s relative power grows, China will become harder to contain militarily. Meanwhile, the policy of reassurance infantilizes America’s allies, encouraging them to shirk their responsibility to provide the majority of their own defense. The incoherence of the policy—and the effects it has had on US partners—should lead to a shift in strategy. A more prudent American policy would change US force posture to that of a genuinely offshore balancer, forcing Asian nations to do more for their own defense.