Opinion | South China Sea should top the list for US-China ‘guardrails’

The road to agreement on this needed safeguard to prevent a clash will be long and tortuous, but worthwhile

In particular, an agreement over incidents at sea similar to the US-Soviet pact reached during the Cold War should be pursued

Reading Time:4 minutes

Published: 8:45am, 30 Nov 2021

In the wake of the virtual summit between China’s President Xi Jinping and US President Joe Biden, the US is proposing to set up “guardrails” to avoid a clash. What might they be and how likely is it to set them up?

According to US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, the US wants to “ensure that there are guardrails around the US-China competition”. However, he went on to say that the US and its partners want to “write the rules of the road for the 21st century in a way that advances our interests, reflects our values”.

Setting up guardrails will be a non-starter with China if it is approached in such an overbearing manner. Xi has said China will not be “bullied, oppressed or subjugated”, nor will it evolve in directions set by others.

The two countries could moderate the tone and tenor of their rhetoric.

China has its own idea of general “guardrails” for the relationship. In a July 26 meeting with US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, Foreign Minister Wang Yi laid out the specifics. He said China has three bottom lines – the US must not challenge China’s model of governance, interfere in China’s development, or violate its territorial integrity.

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