High-ranking representatives of the USA and China are currently in Anchorage, Alaska, to discuss future relations between the two countries.
Will there be a new cold war? Or does it already exist? And if so, what needs to be done to prevent an escalation?
While France and Britain have already sent their navies into Pacific waters to participate in the defence of the current world order here, the decisive actors are of course located in the region itself.
The Western alliance has high hopes for the so-called Quad Alliance, consisting of the USA, Japan, Australia and India. These are to work together to control a rising China and, in particular, to preserve international waters as free shipping lanes for all to use.
Similar to NATO in its founding phase, the alliance is thus focused on one main military adversary, but this time lacks an institution like the European Union, i.e. a deeper alliance between the individual member states. In addition, each of the four countries has major economic interests in relation to China; a complete disengagement, as was still possible vis-à-vis the Soviet Union, is hardly being seriously considered.
The Quad is just at the beginning of its history, the next months will show how this alliance defines its mission and whether it will be able to show a long-term perspective for the region.
Simon Dierich 