The United States and China in Power Transition - Strategic Studies ...

Chinese analysts also agree with this assessment, 207
although they also understand that the United States
will be able to continue to find fault with China and
use its heavy-handed approach toward China in the
years to come.
Do’s and Don’ts on the Core Interests.
The Chinese have no illusions about U.S. staying
power. They are no strangers to U.S. heavy-handed
approaches, either. Their most important concern is
that the United States can be unappreciative of China’s
core interests, challenge China at will, and force
China off balance from its strategy of at-odds-but-notat-war
from time to time. The hot-tempered confrontations
between China and the United States in 2010
are timely reminders of this contentious nature of the
two nations’ relations:
• In January 2010, President Obama notified
Congress of his authorization to sell more than
$6 billion worth of weapon systems to Taiwan.
• In February 2010, President Obama met with
the Dalai Lama at the White House.
• These two acts were considered to be the United
States stepping on China’s core interests and
set off a firestorm in China. China subsequently
suspended high-level military and security exchanges
with the United States.
• In March 2010, a South Korean warship was
sunk in the disputed waters between the two
Koreas. China refused to join the United States
in condemning North Korea. Months later,
China also refused to endorse the U.S.-led investigation
results.
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