Beyond bipolar: why China-US rivalry defies the Cold War model

The world has not slid into a simple US–China bipolar order but become “two superpowers and many strong powers”, veteran Peking University scholar Wang Jisi has warned, pointing to a relationship plagued by structural confrontation, deep misunderstandings and rising risks of conflict. In a wide-ranging virtual conversation last Friday at the University of Hong Kong’s Centre on Contemporary China and the World (CCCW), Wang voiced concerns about America’s inward turn under US President Donald...