Hal Brands
US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan traveled to Beijing last week for what the White House called “candid, substantive, and constructive” — in other words, contentious — talks with Chinese officials. Sullivan’s visit is his first to China in his current role. But it probably marks one of the last major attempts at diplomatic engagement between President Joe Biden’s administration and the government of Xi Jinping.
It also offers a chance to take the measure of Biden’s record on China, one that features historic achievements, glaring weaknesses and unanswered questions.
Biden’s team likes to call its China strategy “invest, align, compete”: invest in core US strengths, align with friendly countries, and thereby compete effectively where American and Chinese interests clash. Add a fourth verb — “talk” — and you have a framework for evaluating the administration’s approach.
US domestic investments are most notable in advanced and emerging technologies. This administration steered legislation through Congress promoting generational investments in semiconductors and clean-energy technology, two vital sectors in the clash for economic and geopolitical power.
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