A New Strategic Framework for Advancing U.S. Interests in the Economic Relationship with China

Today, rising security concerns have become a defining feature in the U.S.-China economic relationship. Heightened tensions over trade, investment, and regulatory restrictions on both sides have turned economic competition into a worrisome source of instability, with global geopolitical and economic repercussions. In this context, it is imperative that the United States develop a strong, pragmatic strategy for advancing its economic and security interests in the complex and consequential economic relationship with China. This research project seeks to guide policymakers as they develop a new strategic framework that serves the core economic and security interests of the United States.

As part of this research endeavor, the CNAS report—Disorderly Conduct: How U.S.-China Competition Upended the International Economic Order and What the United States Can Do to Fix It—argues that the primary objective of the United States should be to lead in the creation and maintenance of a new global economic order in which the efficiency and innovation of open markets are pursued side by side with the establishment of new norms for government interventions. To achieve this, the United States should have clearly defined areas of interests as related to hard power, resilience, and commercial engagements.

Resetting the global economic order to account for today’s geopolitical reality is no easy task, and doing so requires the United States to overcome hurdles both at home and in collaboration with allies. With this series of publications, we hope to lay the intellectual groundwork for addressing these challenges, helping policymakers as they navigate foreseeable turbulence in the U.S.-China economic relationship.