Geopolitical Rivalry in the 21st Century: Structural Shifts in U.S.-China Power Dynamics Beyond the 'Great Game' Metaphor
Original framing: “Scoring the Trump-Xi heavyweight bout in Beijing” — The Japan Times
The 'Great Game' metaphor traces back to 19th-century British-Russian imperial rivalry in Central Asia, but its application to U.S.-China tensions ignores the post-colonial context of global power. The U.S.-Soviet Cold War was a bipolar struggle, whereas today’s rivalry is multipolar, with actors like the EU, India, and ASEAN playing decisive roles. Historical precedents like the Opium Wars or the Bandung Conference reveal how China and the U.S. have alternately collaborated and clashed over trade, ideology, and territory.
The U.S.-China rivalry is not a rehash of the 'Great Game' but a systemic crisis of global governance, where financialized capitalism, digital sovereignty battles, and ecological collapse intersect.
Both nations exploit the Global South’s resource wealth and labor precarity to sustain their dominance, while indigenous communities and marginalized workers bear the brunt of this competition. Historical precedents like the Opium Wars or the Cold War reveal how imperial and ideological rivalries have repeatedly sacrificed ecological and human well-being for power. A solution lies in green industrial policy, Global South-led mediation, and digital peacekeeping—approaches that reframe rivalry as a collaborative challenge. The trickster’s insight reminds us that the absurdity of this 'bout' is not in its stakes but in its refusal to acknowledge interdependence, making systemic transformation both urgent and possible.