The U.S. National Security Strategy report is the expression and vehicle for the U.S. government to identify threats, recognize, and respond to threats in a specific period. According to the perception of China in the National Security Strategy since the Obama administration, the United States’ positioning toward China has experienced a transformation from a “partner” to a “middle ground” country, and then from a “competitor” to an “adversary”. Through a comparative analysis of the positioning of China by the three administrations of Obama, Trump, and Biden, this article finds that there are unique geopolitical considerations behind the change in the U.S. government’s cognitive positioning of China, and it has jointly adopted a series of measures to put pressure on China. Specifically, during the Obama period, the strategic focus shifted to the Asia-Pacific, beginning to check and balance China's influence. During the Trump period, the “Indo-Pacific Strategy” was expanded and resources were poured into containing China. The Biden period realized that the "Decisive Decade" was coming and sought to Out-Competing China. There is no doubt that the change in the U.S. government's cognitive positioning of China has also had a very negative impact on Sino-U.S. relations, which is mainly reflected in the fact that Sino-U.S. relations have shifted from friendship to strategic competition during the Obama period. The nature and status of Sino-U.S. relations during the Trump period have been criticized. Sino-U.S. relations have entered a stage of strategic competition and stalemate during the Biden era.

Authors:
Anlin Zhuang, Shanghai International Studies University, China

About the Presenter(s)
Zhuang Anlin is currently a doctoral candidate at the School of International Relations and Public Affairs and the Institute of Middle East Studies at Shanghai International Studies University.

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