The China challenge cannot be met by drawing a line in the water and telling all of Asia that “you are either with us or against us.”
Vice President Mike Pence’s speech at the Hudson Institute last month was a watershed in U.S.-China relations. Pence trumpeted what is obvious of late, that the relationship has shifted from competition mixed with guarded but extensive engagement to out-and-out strategic rivalry. Tellingly, the speech generated little pushback, including from Democrats. On the contrary it seemed to capture the zeitgeist of a growing consensus in Washington that it is time for a harder line on China.
Bipartisan Frustration with Beijing
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WNU Editor: I would say that in Asia the vast majority of countries/governments do want the U.S. to take a hard stand against China. Unfortunately .... they do not want to get their hands dirty to join the U.S. to do this. They are also definitely not ready for a Cold War against China, but this is one of those situations where they may not be ready to get into a confrontation with China, but China is definitely to be confrontational against them.
