Rather than helping Taiwan prepare for conventional defense by hitting targets in the Chinese mainland — a strategy that could further provoke the PRC while failing to match the PLA’s superior firepower — the United States should encourage Taiwan to develop its asymmetric capabilities.
Russia does not possess enough latent power to seek military entanglement, but it might not have to if the U.S. and China were to fight a long and costly war. Russia would be thrilled with a conflict that saps the strengths of both its largest competitors.
American and Chinese interests do indeed overlap and clash at various points across the globe, from the halls of foreign governments to social media posts online. Yet this does not preordain war nor does the “Allison Trap” provide a useful framework for understanding rising tensions or their associated risks.
"I am not saying go to war with China, as that would be the apocalypse. The one thing the United States needs to do is redefine national security. We need a new understanding of our national security in this new era."
The dispute over the WTO’s interpretation of a "public body" represents a more fundamental question of whether the WTO system can handle the state capitalism of China.
China’s military build-up, aggressive attitude in international waters, contested territory claims and new trade deals have weakened the United States' position in the Pacific. Although the United States is down, it is not out yet. The United States is still the world's largest economy and one of, if not the most, influential nations in the world. These determinants mean that the United States can recover its position if it plays its cards right.
War is not intrinsically a relic of the past. Its prospects are indeed very real, although it would be to the detriment of any great power today to engage in conflict with one another even if it could be assured that no nuclear escalation would occur.
ISIS-K presents a unique challenge to the Taliban, many of whom have experience as fighters but few of whom are experts in governance. ISIS-K seeks to dissolve nation-state borders and establish an Islamic caliphate with Afghanistan at its heart.
The anecdote to this current ‘crackpot era’ is actual realism and restraint when it comes to China. This means not succumbing to the belief that this competition is a zero-sum contest that will determine the fate of liberalism or falling for romantic Orientalist narratives that situate China-US competition in a grand arc of history.
To properly counter China, the U.S. must first correctly define its place in the world. China is clearly no longer just a “rising power” or a passing fad, which its immense global influence reveals.
Realist Review 