International Quarterly of Foreign Relations

International Quarterly of Foreign Relations

U.S.-China Strategic Competition and its Impact on US Indo-Pacific Policy: Strategic Lessons for the Islamic Republic of Iran

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Khalil Ghalkhanbaz 1
Enayatollah Yazdani 2
Shahroz Ebrahimi 3
1 PhD candidate, Department of Political Sciences, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran
2 Professor of International Relations, Department of Political Sciences, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran
3 Associate Professor of International Relations, Department of Political Sciences, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran
10.22034/fr.2024.428449.1468
Abstract
The strategic competition between the United States and China, which had already begun, has become more serious since the beginning of the second decade of the new millennium. This strategic competition, which has had a major influence on US Indo-Pacific policy, has promoted Washington's strategic shift to the Pacific region. To balance China in East Asia, Washington has significantly reduced its presence in many regions of the world, including the Middle East and Europe, and focused on the Indo-Pacific region. This paper aims to examine the impact of strategic competition between the United States and China on US Indo-Pacific policy.
The paper seeks to answer this question: how strategic US-China competition has affected U.S. Indo-Pacific policy, regional competition, and Iranian activism? The main hypothesis of this paper is that the US-China strategic competition has led the US to shift its policy focus from West Asia to the Indo-Pacific region and coalitions to prevent China's seizure of power and expand its sphere of influence, and increase regional competition and sinusoidal tensions between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the United States in the Middle East.
The methodology used for this paper is qualitative with a descriptive-analytical approach. Library and internet sources are used to collect data and attempt to analyze the sources as well as check the hypothesis theory.
Keywords
"Indo-Pacific"
"Strategic Competition"
"People's Republic of China"
"USA"
"The Middle East"
Subjects
  • Al-Rawahi, Sultan, (Jun/10/2020), “Regional power of the middle east”, From the Selected Works of Sultan Al-Rawahi, Sultan Qaboos University, Oman, at: https://works.bepress.com/sultan-al-rawahi/7/
  • Beckley, Michael, (2022), “Enemies of My Enemy How Fear of China Is Forging a New World Order” at:https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/2021-02-14/china-new-world-order-enemies-my-enemy
  • Campbell, Kurt, Doshi, Rush, (2021), “How America Can Shore Up Asian Order A Strategy for Restoring Balance and Legitimacy”, at: https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/united-states/2021-01-12/how-america-can-shore-asian-order
  • Carnelos, Marco, (Jun/24/2021), “How will US disengagement shape the Middle East?” at: https://www.middleeasteye.net/opinion/us-middle-east-disengagement-shape-how
  • Cook, Steven A, (Jul/20/2022), “Russia Still Has Willing Partners in the Middle East”, at: https://foreignpolicy.com/2022/07/20/putin-meeting-iran-turkey-russia-middle-east-syria-ukraine/

-   Dassa Kaye, Dalia, Robinson, Linda, Martini, Jeffrey, Vest, Nathan, Rhoades, Ashley L. (2021), “REIMAGINING U.SS. STRATEGY IN THE MIDDLE EAST Sustainable Partnerships, Strategic Investments” Published by the RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, Calif. at: https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA958-1.html

-   David Miller, Aaron, (Nov/14/2023), “Biden Owns the Israel-Palestine Conflict Now” at: https://foreignpolicy.com/2023/11/14/biden-support-israel-hamas-war-gaza-palestine-conflict-diplomacy-future-commitment/

-   Fukuyama, Francis, (2021), “The future of American power” at: https://www.economist.com/by-invitation/2021/08/18/francis-fukuyama-on-the-end-of-american-hegemony

-   Hass, Ryan, (2021), “How China is responding to escalating strategic competition with the US” at: https://www.brookings.edu/articles/how-china-is-responding-to-escalating-strategic-competition-with-the-us/

-   Hass, Richard, Kupchan, Charles A, (2021), “The New Concert of Powers, How to Prevent Catastrophe and Promote Stability in a Multipolar World” at: https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/world/2021-03-23/new-concert-powers

-   Heer, Paul, (Oct/03/2021), “There Will Be a U.S.-China Cold War” at:https://nationalinterest.org/feature/there-will-be-us-china-cold-war-194791

-   Herszenhorn, David, Cerulus, Laurens, (2021), “The Joe they don’t know: Europe reckons with Biden’s Asia push” at: https://www.politico.eu/article/us-joe-biden-eu-reckons-asia-push/

  • Ignatius, David, (2023), “Biden’s unsentimental foreign policy strategy” at: https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/01/04/biden-foreign-policy-strategy-realism
  • Indyk, Martin, (Feb/14/2022), “The Price of Retrenchment What the Ukraine Crisis Reveals About the Post-American Middle East” at: https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/middle-east/2022-02-14/price-retrenchment
  • Kempe, Frederick and Massolo, Giampiero, (2019), “THE MENA REGION: A GREAT POWER COMPETITION”, ISPI and Atlantic Council, edited by Karim Mezran, Arturo Varvelli
  • Kortunov, Andrey, (2021), “Meeting Security Challenges in the Gulf: Ideal Solutions and Practical Steps”, “STEPPING AWAY FROM THE ABYSS: A Gradual Approach Towards a New Security System in the Persian Gulf”, Edited by: Luigi Narbone & Abdolrasool Divsallar, European University Institute (EUI),
  • Mair, John and Packham, Colin, (Aug/07/2019), “NATO needs to address China's rise, says Stoltenberg” at: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-australia-nato-idUSKCN1UX0YX
  • Mearsheimer, John J. (2014), “Can China Rise Peacefully?” at: https://nationalinterest.org/commentary/can-china-rise-peacefully-10204
  • Mearsheimer, John J., Stephen M. Walt (2016) “The Case for Offshore Balancing: A Superior U.S. Grand Strategy”, Foreign Affairs, July/August 2016, at: https:// www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/united-states/2016-06-13
  • Muasher, Marwan, (Aug/26/2021), “Marwan Muasher on America’s declining influence in the Arab world” at:
  • ­ https://www.economist.com/by-invitation/2021/08/26/marwan-muasher-on-americas-declining-influence-in-the-arab-world

-   NATIONAL SECURITY STRATEGY, (2022), at: https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Biden-Harris-Administrations-National-Security-Strategy-10.2022.pdf

-   Nasr, Vali, (Jun/Feb 2022), “All Against All, The Sectarian Resurgence in the Post-American Middle East” at: https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/middle-east/2021-12-02/iran-middle-east-all-against-all

-   Nasr, Vali, Fantappie, Maria, (2021), “How Iran and Saudi Arabia Can Together Bring Peace to the Middle East” at: https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/iran/2021-08-03/how-iran-and-saudi-arabia-can-together-bring-peace-middle-east

-   Ney, Joseph s, (2021), “What Difference Did 9/11 Make?”, at: https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/20-years-after-9-11-lessons-for-america-by-joseph-s-nye-2021-09

  • O’connor, Tom, (Dec/10/2019), “If Iran Falls, ISIS May Rise Again” at:https://www.newsweek.com/if-iran-falls-isis-may-rise-1475818

-   Pager, Tayler, Bertrand, Natasha, (2021), “White House shifts from Middle East quagmires to a showdown with China” at: https://www.politico.com/news/2021/01/28/biden-china-foreign-policy-463674

-   Rajagopalan, Rajeswari Pillai (2021), “Does AUKUS Augment or Diminish the Quad?”,at: https://thediplomat.com/2021/09/does-aukus-augment-or-diminish-the-quad/

-   Roach, Stephen, (Feb/10/2022), “China's Triangulation Gambit” at: https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/china-new-marriage-of-convenience-with-russia-by-stephen-s-roach-2022-02?barrier=accesspaylog

-   Rogin, Josh, (May/17/2017), “Trump to unveil plans for an ‘Arab NATO’ in Saudi Arabia”, at: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/josh-rogin/wp/2017/05/17/trump-to-unveil-plans-for-an-arab-nato-in-saudi-arabia/?utm_term=.b835b2e3ad14

-   Sanger, David, (Nov/16/2021), “Washington Hears Echoes of the ’50s and Worries: Is This a Cold War With China?” at: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/17/us/politics/china-new-cold-war.html

  • Scholz, Olaf, (Jan/Feb/2023), “How to Avoid a New Cold War in a Multipolar Era” at: https://www.foreignaffairs.com/germany/olaf-scholz-global-zeitenwende-how-avoid-new-cold-war

-   SIPRI, (April/24/2023), “World military expenditure reaches new record high as European spending surges” at: https://www.sipri.org/media/press-release/2023/world-military-expenditure-reaches-new-record-high-european-spending-surges

  • Speers, David (2021), “The first meeting of the Quad could test Australia’s relationship with China”, at: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-03-11/the-quadleaders-meeting-china-trade-test-relationship/13234080

-   Stockman, Farah, (2021), “China Has Risen.’ And It Is Hungry for Competition, at:

  • ­ https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/30/opinion/china-us-competition.html
    • Talia Ferro, J, (2000), “Security Seeking under Anarchy, Defensive Realism Revisited”, International Security, 25(3)
    • Tisdall, simon, (July/25/2021), “Biden races to unite allies against China knowing sooner or later an explosion will occur” at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/commentisfree/2021/jul/25/an-explosion-is-coming-biden-races-to-unite-allies-against-china
    • Vakil, Sanam and Quilliam, Neil, (2021), “Steps to enablea Middle East regional security process” at:https://www.chathamhouse.org/2021/04/steps-enable-middle-east-regional-security-process
    • Wadhams, Nick, (June/15/2023), “Henry Kissinger’s Century: From US-China Tension to the Fate of Russia” at: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2023-06-15/henry-kissinger-bloomberg-interview-on-us-china-conflict-putin-brexit
    • Walt, Stephen M, (Oct/18/2023), “America Is a Root Cause of Israel and Palestine’s Latest War” at: https://foreignpolicy.com/2023/10/18/america-root-cause-war-israel-gaza-palestine
    • Walt, Stephen M, (2022), “The Ukraine War Doesn’t Change Everything” at:https://foreignpolicy.com/2022/04/13/ukraine-war-realism-great-powers-unipolarity/

-   Walt, Stephen, (2021), “Afghanistan Hasn’t Damaged U.S. Credibility” at:

  • ­ https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/08/21/afghanistan-hasnt-damaged-u-s-credibility/
    • Wehrey, Frederic and Sokolsky, Richard, (2015), “Imagining a New Security Order in the Persian Gulf,” Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.