US and China relations: Assessing the risk of military conflict in Asia

Published 08 September 2020 | 5 minute read

The US-China trade, technology and geopolitical conflicts have precipitated a new Cold War, but does this mean that a hot war is inevitable? In this webinar, the Hinrich Foundation and RSIS at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, invited four security experts to discuss the risk of serious military conflict in Asia, amidst rising antagonism between the United States and China.

On 9 Septemeber, Hinrich Foundation Senior Research Fellow Dr Alan Dupont was joined by three speakers to map the contours of this new Cold War, identify key issues to be addressed and assess likely outcomes. Other prominent speakers include:

Dr Amy Searight, Senior Associate (non-resident) for Asia, Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)
Professor Zhu Feng, Executive Director, China Center for Collaborative Studies of the South China Sea, Nanjing University, China
Professor Joseph Liow, RSIS Research Adviser and Tan Kah Kee Chair in Comparative and International Politics, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

During the one hour and a half session, Dr Dupont first outlined the thesis of his latest Hinrich Foundation report titled New Cold War: De-risking the US-China conflict. He analyzed the parallels and differences between this new Cold War and the old one, before elaborating on the importance of middle power diplomacy to mitigate tensions.

Dr Searight then proceeded to explain the causes of recent escalations from the US perspective and the general policy direction Washington is taking towards China, as well as how this might change under a Biden administration. Professor Zhu brought in the Chinese perspective and shared his thoughts on the prospect of Sino-US relations.

Professor Liow evaluated the impact of US-China conflict on ASEAN countries and how smaller states like Singapore could seek for opportunities for greater regional corporation in the face of great power rivalry.

This session was moderated by Hinrich Foundation Director of Research and Outreach, Dr Andrew Staples.

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