New Cold War? Rising Tensions between U.S. and China July 19,
2012 China and the United States have never been close allies,
but do differences between these two respective superpowers run
the risk of erupting into a new-Cold War? Today, Chinese
assertiveness on the world stage acts as a counter-balance to
American overtures to several Asian-Pacific states: Vietnam,
Cambodia and Burma. American policy towards Taiwan and Japan has
always made China uneasy, not to mention a military aliance with
South Korea for over fifty years. An American policy shift away
from Europe and the Middle East towards the Pacific has made
China unneasy. After a decade or more of influencing China’s
neighbors, the United States is seeking an opportunity to
develop allies in the region, which will pave the way for
renewed tensions. Since President Barack Obama visited the East
Asia Summit in Bali in November 2011, and later concluded a
security arrangement with Australia, the United States has
cemented its relationship with several A