China: Challenging the United States? The Threat of Offensive Realism in the age of Sino-American Rivalry

Does China pose a threat to the United States? Offensive realism, the theory increasingly on display in Washington and Beijing maintains structural reasons render conflict inevitable, and deteriorating Sino-American relations serve as proof. Analytical eclecticism is employed to disprove offensive realist thinking by analysing contemporary military, economic and domestic issues. A range of primary sources regarding foreign policy from both countries are utilised to assess the Sino-American rivalry, and theories from both countries are employed for a better coloured analysis and understanding of Chinese policy. Offensive realist thinking both creates new tensions and exacerbates existing ones, rendering opportunities for conversation, cooperation and compromise more difficult. Crucially, it overlooks domestic issues in either country, which blinds America to important internal threats, overvalues military and economic ones, while undervaluing issues regarding human rights.