ABSTRACT
This chapter addresses the increasing pessimism noted among American intellectuals, political elites, and policy-makers concerning the confrontational nature of Sino–US political and economic relations since 2016. Although few working inside the Beltway predicted Donald Trump’s victory, a significant number perceived an emerging bipartisan consensus concerning a threat associated with China’s rise. The author spent the summer of 2016 in Washington, DC, interviewing foreign policy analysts and scholars with China expertise. While many described China as a threat due to the combination of its increasing power and perceived American decline, few specifically cited “power” as a problem in Sino–US relations, although several did mention trust. In this chapter, trust is discussed as an important aspect in establishing relationality among nation-states in terms of positive feelings versus estrangement.
