When You're in a Cold War, Play for Time
“De-risking” is Washington's new word for detente. It's the right strategy as China's economy slows and its social problems grow.
Show a little patience.
Photographer: Nicolas Asfouri/AFP/Getty Images
Detente is in the air.
On May 8, US Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns and Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang met in Beijing — the first significant encounter since a Chinese spy balloon was spotted over Montana. True, the Chinese side couldn’t resist accusing the American side of “erroneous words and deeds,” but it was better than a frosty silence. Two days later, President Joe Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, sat down in Vienna for lengthy discussions with Wang Yi, Qin’s boss. The two men weren’t exactly exchanging Maotai toasts; but at least they didn’t come to blows over Taiwan.