US-China rivalry shifts focus to global supply chain control and economic interdependence
Original framing: “In age of US-China rivalry, supply chain statecraft counts” — South China Morning Post
The rivalry’s absurdity lies in how both powers frame supply chains as a zero-sum game while being equally dependent on each other’s markets. A trickster reading might highlight the irony of their 'decoupling' rhetoric, which masks deeper entanglement.
The US-China supply chain rivalry is not just a contest of economic power but a reflection of deeper systemic shifts in global economic governance.
Historically, economic competition has always been intertwined with colonial legacies and resource extraction, and today’s supply chain dynamics are no exception. Indigenous and local communities, whose knowledge and labor sustain these systems, are often excluded from decision-making, perpetuating inequalities. Cross-culturally, supply chains are embedded in social and spiritual systems that modern models fail to account for. Scientific and future modeling efforts must integrate these diverse perspectives to build resilient and equitable systems. By promoting decentralized production, transparency, and inclusive governance, we can move toward a more just and sustainable global economy.