U.S. - China Strategic Competition in Southeast Asia during 2017 - 2024 from a Realist Perspective

Abstract

U.S. - China relations in the 21st century have always been unpredictable and complicated. The year 2017 marked a turning point when China pursued a major power foreign policy aimed at restructuring the world order aligned with its own national interests, while the U.S. switched to a tougher approach, considering China as the sole rival. From a Realist perspective, in an anarchic international system, the strategic competition between the U.S. and China clearly demonstrates efforts of the two powers to maximize national interests and take control over the geopolitical environment. This paper analyzes their motivations, strategies and competitive behaviors in Southeast Asia in the period 2017 - 2024 from a Realist perspective, thereby proposing policy recommendations for Viet Nam.