The Obama administration has warned the incoming Donald Trump administration that a conflict with China could be dangerous and there is nothing that the U.S could achieve by trying to reopen settled issues with Beijing.
“..it’s dangerous,” Ben Rhodes, Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communications for Mr. Obama, told a group of journalists on Tuesday.
On Mr. Trump’s remarks that he might reopen the ‘one China’ policy of the U.S, he said, “China’s not going to negotiate anything. So I’m not sure what is accomplished by saying that – by pursuing an approach where you seek to reopen,” adding that the U.S.-China as “the most important bilateral relationship in the world.”
The key adviser to Mr. Obama said the outgoing administration has pursued a constructive relationship with China. “Most of our signature foreign policy initiatives and achievements were built in part on U.S.-Chinese cooperation,” he said, naming the Paris climate agreement, the Iran nuclear deal, and the management of the global economic crisis in 2009 as examples.
He said the U.S. must push back against China on issues such as its aggressive moves in the South China Sea, but “there’s just much more to be gained from pursuing cooperation when we can with China rather than seeing it as an adversary.”
“I think that’d be very dangerous for everyone – for the whole world, frankly,” the official said.
‘Chinese will benefit if U.S. walks away from TPP’
The outgoing White House official said the “United States is only shooting itself in the foot,” if it walks away from Trans Pacific Partnership trade agreement, as announced by Mr. Trump. “Frankly, it benefits China because it puts them in a stronger position to shape the future of trade and commercial relations in the Asia Pacific. It removes us from the table,” he said, but added that without TPP also, the new administration could carry forward other components of the U.S Asia policy.
Hoping that U.S will continue to hold together India, Australia, Japan and other smaller countries, he said:. “…that’s not to take on China, that’s to say that there is a large group of countries that have a shared interest in there being freedom of navigation and peaceful resolution of dispute,” he said.
On worsening ties with Russia
“We got a lot done with Dmitry Medvedev (Russian Prime Minister, who was President until 2012). We got the New START Treaty done. We supported Russia’s entry in the WTO,” he said, also acknowledging Russian President Vladimir Putin’s role in the Iran deal.
“We couldn’t have gotten an Iran deal without Russia, and I’ve repeatedly credited Russia with that,” Mr. Rhodes said, adding that Mr. Obama had preferred to work with Russia but confrontations created by Russia under Mr. Putin made it difficult.
