US presidential debate reaction, Jilin park stabbing: 7 reads about US-China relations
- From the first US presidential debate to travelling pandas, these are the highlights from the SCMP’s overseas and China correspondents in June 2024
1. Clash or coexist? Defusing US-China tensions is uncertain, even unlikely: analysts
Beijing promises not to take Taiwan by force. Washington vows not to work towards overthrowing the Chinese Communist Party. These are among the difficult, perhaps politically impossible, steps that would be needed to avoid a US-China war and approximate some version of coexistence, according to former CIA, Pentagon and other strategic experts. And many are convinced that conflict is more likely than not.
2. China faces no-win scenario whoever tops US presidential debates: analysts
Despite a subdued performance by the incumbent, the debate between US President Joe Biden and his predecessor Donald Trump did not tilt the race definitively towards the challenger, according to diplomacy experts in China who watched the event. Regardless of which candidate wins in the November election, the result would be the same “harmful competition” with China seen as a strategic rival, despite their different tactics, they said.
3. US lawmakers meeting Modi after Dalai Lama signals India shift on China: analysts
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi hosted American lawmakers, including former House speaker Nancy Pelosi, in New Delhi on June 21, shortly after they had an audience with the Dalai Lama, a meeting that defied stern warnings from Beijing. “India has once again indicated that it is willing to gradually ramp up pressure on issues like Tibet and Taiwan,” said Harsh Pant, an international relations professor at King’s College London.
