US-China relations will be the most important global geostrategic issue and an important part of the world's future. Tensions between China and the United States escalated, especially over economic and political issues during the Trump era. Among the factors contributing to the escalation of tensions were ‘trade war’, ‘Washington's support for Hong Kong and Taiwan’, ‘criticism of China Xinjiang's approach’, and ‘Washington accusing China of spreading the Coronavirus’. (Photo quoted from Yahoo’s image)
On the one hand, China has economic, political, diplomatic, and sometimes military influence in different parts of the world and wants hegemony in the Asia-Pacific region. Also, the US view of China's growing power also seems to be at the forefront of US foreign policy and defense strategy.
The United States pursues an Indo-Pacific strategy and uses the capacities of East and South Asian countries to work together in the face of a common challenge in the future. India, as one of China's main competitors in Asia, has components of power such as being among the top five economic powers in the world, wide land and large population, cheap labor, having a diverse economy, and having shared borders with China. So it can play a decisive role in balancing China as one of America's key allies in the region.
In principle, the great powers, in a confrontation with each other, use a third country to balance their rival. Meanwhile, the trilateral interactions between the United States, China, and India are some of the most important triangles in contemporary Asian geopolitics.
Although US-China relations are at the center of the global leadership conflict, the triple influence between Washington, Beijing, and Delhi includes two simultaneous security rivalries, one between China and India and the other between the US and China.
India is also highly motivated to work with the United States. China's maritime strategy, Sino-Indian border disputes, increased Sino-Pakistani cooperation, the formation of the China-Pakistan Economic Belt and Road Corridor are among Delhi's main concerns in its strategic rivalry with Beijing.
Also, in the eyes of many citizens and officials in New Delhi, China is the most important issue and growing threat to India. So over the years, India has strengthened its strategic partnership with the United States.
From the US point of view, India is potentially one of the best options to contain China across Asia. In this way, the US will use India as a tool to control China as much as possible.
Washington is also seeking to create a platform for strengthening partnerships in a variety of areas, including broad foreign trade and investment, and defense partnerships with India to counter China.
The common threat of China will play an important role in the global partnership between the United States and India, the promotion of bilateral relations, and broad political, economic, and strategic convergence.
So, as much as India needs the cooperation of the United States to strike a balance with China, the United States also needs India to balance its position with China. Therefore, it seems that the more the confrontation between the United States and China intensifies, the more prominent the role of India will be. In this regard, Delhi and Washington may consider increasing joint military exercises, access to each other's naval facilities, technological cooperation, maintaining the security of sea lines in Asia, the Pacific and Indian Oceans, and common views on maritime security (China’s threat).
Farzad Ramezani Bonesh
Senior Researcher and Analyst of International Affairs
