In July this year, the Chinese consulate in Houston had been ordered to close its doors by the US government. This development is just one out of the many conflicts plaguing these two economic giants. Nothing like this has been seen in decades between China and the United States.
There are wide-ranging issues between Washington and Beijing that threaten to boil over if not managed properly. The most notable ones are as follows:
COVID -19
In some of the interviews granted by Donald Trump, he was heard several times referring to the coronavirus as ‘Chinese Virus’. His reasons lay with his staunch belief that the Chinese government failed to give accurate reports concerning the extent of the damage caused by the disease. He believes that their government simply ignored its duty to report to WHO since the first case of the virus was documented on Wuhan in 2019.
However, China insists that it has been nothing but transparent since the onset of the pandemic. Following Trump’s accusations, the World Health Organization has denied its involvement in supporting the disinformation by the Chinese. In response to this, the United States President Donald Trump formally started the withdrawal process from WHO, making good on his threats to deprive the UN body of its top funding source over its dismal handling of the pandemic.
HONG KONG
Tensions have clocked to a new height between the US and China. Recently, protests arose as a result of Beijing’s imposition of a new security legislation over the previous colony of Britain, which returned to China in 1997.
In response to this imposition, Donald Trump has signed a sanction effectively severing preferential economic treatment for Hong Kong. This move will allow him to place visa restrictions and sanctions over financial institutions and Chinese officials who’d been involved in enacting the new security law.
Predictably, China threatens to counter with a retaliatory move of their own in no distant time.
There are wide-ranging issues between Washington and Beijing that threaten to boil over if not managed properly.
SOUTH CHINA SEA
Until 2020, the Chinese has always laid claim to ninety percent of the South Sea. Meanwhile, Malaysia, Brunei, Vietnam, Taiwan and the Philippines has actively contested this claim.
Currently, the United States has hardened its stance in the matter, tilting towards the other Asian countries. The US believes that China has plans to build a Maritime Empire in the energy rich sea.
On July 13, 2020, Mike Pompeo, the US secretary of state, issued a statement that accused Beijing of a bully-based campaign and its claim, unlawful.
HUAWEI
The tech company based in China has been added to the US ‘Entity list’ In 2019, the US suspected the company of violating their sanction on Iran and can spy on customers through their devices. This security concern led Washington to add Huawei to its ‘Entity list’
However, Huawei has vehemently denied every one of the allegations and accused Washington of frustrating its growth because no American company can compete with their prices and tech savvy.
Washington has gone ahead to push other countries to drop Huawei, posing the same violations as their reason. The friction between the two has caused a serious decline in their access of Chips and other important parts from their US suppliers.
NORTH KOREA
According to the US, China has breached their sanctions on North Korea. Though Beijing has denied the allegations, tensions continue to rise.
The common goal of both countries is for North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons program and as such, should work together. Yet, that is far from happening. The Chinese government has agreed to lift some of its sanctions over North Korea but the United States does not agree.
Kim Jong Un, the leader of North Korea has met with Donald Trump thrice in an effort to ease the US sanctions but failed to agree every time. While US requires them to give up the nuclear weapons in Pyongyang, North Korea wants all the sanctions, lifted.
Nevertheless, the number-two diplomat, Stephen Beigun remains optimistic. In an interview, he opined that the two countries might still work together in spite of the dispute because of the greater good of ceasing the development of nuclear weapons by North Korea.
UIGHURS
The Uighurs are a minority Muslim group that reside in the western Xinjiang region.
The Chinese government set up complexes in that remote Xinjiang called Vocational training centers. They have been condemned for trying to stamp out what they term as extremism and have the Uighurs acquire new skills within the complexes.
Following the discovery of the violation of Uighur’s human rights, the US has placed sanctions on all the Chinese institutions, officials and companies.
A Better, Safer World
The relationship between the US and China is reaching a dangerous point. The already fragile relationship is on the brink of total collapse and we could only hope that in the coming days, the relationship could improve for the better. People from all over the world are pinning their hopes that the result of the 2020 US presidential elections will provide a pathway for calmer, more collaborative partnership between the two great powers.
As a famous world leader once quipped: “If we cannot now end our differences, at least we can help make the world safe for diversity.”
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