Thoughts
The US-China relationship is too complex to define as a unitary idea. Some will say, “The US-China relationship is deteriorating,” and I’ll think, well, which part?
Both China and the United States’ influence on global affairs is immense. Yet, the international community still does not fully comprehend the total impact of both China and the United States’ influence on global affairs.
Although the United States and China appear to be grappling with domestic political and economic issues, none of these issues appear to threaten either country’s status as superpowers.
The United States and China remain incentivized to conduct large-scale transactions with each other (i.e., trade, commerce, etc.). Broad philosophical alignment exists around issues such as climate change.
China and the European Union have agreed to exchange information on export controls “as part of efforts to dial down tension over trade imbalances and geopolitical issues.”
Strained relations between the United States and China risk derailing progress at the 2023 UN Climate Change Conference in Dubai from 30 November to 12 December 2023.
Whether the United States and China can reach a climate agreement represents a critical test in the bilateral relationship between two dominant superpowers.
US-China Relations
CIA Builds Its Own Artificial Intelligence Tool in Rivalry With China (Bloomberg)
The Central Intelligence Agency is preparing to roll out a feature akin to OpenAI Inc.’s now-famous program that will use artificial intelligence to give analysts better access to open-source intelligence, according to agency officials. The CIA’s Open-Source Enterprise division plans to provide intelligence agencies with its AI tool soon.
It’s part of a broader government campaign to harness the power of AI and compete with China, which is seeking to become the global leader in the field by 2030. That US push dovetails with the intelligence community’s struggle to process the vast amounts of data that’s now publicly available, amid criticism that it’s been slow to exploit that source.
As disasters spike, superpowers face mounting calls to forge climate deal (Washington Post)
Leaders of some of the world’s top climate institutions are ratcheting up pressure on the United States and China to forge an agreement on confronting global warming, fearing that the strained relations of these two superpowers could derail progress at international negotiations in Dubai.
E.U.-China Relations
China and Europe try to dial down trade tension (CNN.com)
China and the European Union have agreed to exchange information on export controls as part of efforts to dial down tension over trade imbalances and geopolitical issues.
Europe’s trade chief said the relationship was at a “crossroads” and the bloc’s exporters needed better access to the world’s second biggest economy.
“Our relationship needs rebalancing to be mutually beneficial, based on transparency, fairness, predictability and reciprocity. I am glad that we made progress in addressing some market access issues,” Valdis Dombrovskis said in a statement.
Global Affairs
Niall Ferguson on Whether a New Era Has Begun (Bloomberg Business)
“What is really significant about this historical moment is that we are in the first inning of Cold War 2,” says Ferguson, the Milbank Family Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution and a contributor to Bloomberg Opinion. “Whether it’s in solar panels or in artificial intelligence, a competition is intensifying between two superpowers, the US and a communist-led superpower. Now, is this starting to sound familiar?”
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