世界大變革中的中美關係
世界正在經歷百年未有之大變革，這已成爲全球的共識。然而，不同的國家、不同的學派有着不同的認知和解讀。總體看，戰後確立的世界秩序已經很難甚至不能應對頻頻出現的各種世界性、時代性新挑戰。這些挑戰主要表現爲：大國地緣政治強勢迴歸，圍饒權力中心較量空前激烈，敵友、夥伴、對手關係定位更趨複雜；經濟問題強烈政治化，保護主義、孤立主義、爲所欲爲的霸權主義橫行，嚴重衝擊有利於經濟增長的基於規則的既有秩序；西方發達國家聯手對其他國家進行技術封鎖，佔領和牢牢掌握第四次產業革命的核心技術，緊握未來發展權。
The world is undergoing a once-in-a-century transformation. This is recognized worldwide; however, different countries and different schools of thought hold different perspectives. In general terms, the post-Second World War order is struggling to cope with some global contemporary challenges, including the following: greater strength among the great powers again and an uniquely ferocious contest focused on centers of power, wherein determining friends, partners, and opponents is extremely complex; economic issues are strongly politicized and protectionism, isolationism, and the desire for hegemonism are rampant, which seriously impact the existing rule-based order designed to promote economic growth; the US and other developed Western countries have teamed up to impose technology blockades on other countries so that they can dominate the core technologies of the fourth industrial revolution and maintain future development rights.
在世界大變革的背景下，中美關係同步發生着新的具有相當深度的變化和相應的政策調整。
Against the backdrop of these major global changes, China-US relations have undergone new profound changes and corresponding policy adjustments.
一是美國的對華戰略定位發生明顯的重大變化，從“不確定”轉變爲“戰略競爭者"，黨派、政府、軍界、智庫等形成共識，認爲中國有能力有意願挑戰美國的霸權地位，美國應該丟掉幻想，採取多種方式制衡中國。在調整對華政策的方向上，政治精英們扮演着先鋒作用，強硬派漸成主流，溫和派噤若寒蟬。他們認爲，只要敲打中國，美國必勝。“秀才羣”、“商業圈”和“武夫幫羣”的匯聚支撐起了特朗普例外政策的獨特風景線。
First, the US has significantly adjusted its strategic positioning vis-à-vis China, from uncertainty to strategic competition, with US political parties, the government, the military and think tanks forming the opinion that China poses a challenge to US hegemony and that America needs to get real and adopt measures to counter China. Policy elites in the US have played a leading role in adjusting their country's approach to China. Hardliners have gradually become the mainstream, while moderates have been left out in the cold. The hardliners believe that as long as they keep China down, the US will prevail. US academics, businesspeople, and military personnel all support Trump's unique vision of American exceptionalism.
二是經貿碰撞將成中美關係緊張的新常態，更成爲特朗普政府對華強硬政策的重要組成部分。在這樣的形勢下，“貿易戰”和“變臉戲法”成了中美關係中的關鍵詞。當中美第二輪貿易磋商達成“停止”貿易戰共識後，美國內部支持和反對貿易戰的聲音均批評特朗普“輸了”，姆努欽財長更公開聲稱，總統根據中國的履約情況“可以隨時決定恢復關稅”。貿易戰的大棒時刻高懸，從雙邊到多邊，從貿易到投資，領域與範疇擴大。美方或聲稱要重談中國入世條件和市場經濟地位，或以“國家安全”爲由，審查中國赴美投資，阻遏、削弱經貿在中美關係中的壓艙石作用。不難看出，貿易戰只是中美關係緊張的前戲，“中國製造2025”纔是美國的重要目標。
Second, economic and trade friction have become the new norm in China-US relations, as well as an important part of the Trump administration's tough stance on China. “Trade war” and “flip-flop” are the buzzwords of this new state of affairs. After the second round of trade consultations between China and the US averted a trade war, both American supporters and detractors of a trade war with China criticized Trump for backing down. United States Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin publicly claimed that Trump could choose to introduce tariffs at any time. The threat of a trade war loomed large as it escalated from bilateral to multilateral, from trade to investment, and across ever more products and industries. Threats have also been made to renegotiate the terms of China's accession to the WTO and its status as a market economy, or even review China's investments in the US on the grounds of national security. All of this has undermined the vital role economics and trade play in China-US relations. It is clear that a trade war is only the forerunner to tensions in China-US relations; Made in China 2025 is the US's major objective.
三是美方堅持“一中”政策沒有變，這是美方在各種中美關係對話中說得很順口的一句話，然而一個時期以來，美國更多強調中國大陸一方首先破壞了臺海現狀，以此掩蓋它更積極主動全面強化美臺關係的言行，以增強臺灣牽制和抵抗大陸的能力。《2018財年國防授權法案》具有分水嶺意義，它不僅涉及美臺軍艦互訪內容，還要求國防部在收到臺灣方面軍售請求半年之內向國會提交答覆建議報告。這無異於把對臺軍售作爲一項強制性法規固化，預示美國的對臺政策朝着官方化方向向前邁出了一步。緊隨其後的《臺灣旅行法》出臺，更爲美國官方赴臺出席各類活動埋下伏筆。美國還在國際舞臺上爲臺灣撐腰，拉攏日本、澳大利亞等盟友支持臺灣，甚至炒作商籤美臺自貿協定，把臺灣列入其印太戰略的一枚棋子。美國激活“不沉航母”制約中國的動向令人深思，它不僅在南海借航行自由侵犯中國主權，還叫嚷要穿越臺灣海峽，挑戰中國核心利益。這說明美國在以更具進攻性的方式與中國進行戰略博弈。
Third, the US insists its one-China policy has not changed. This is something the US has paid lip-service to during various dialogues on China-US relations. Nevertheless, for some time now, the US has claimed that the Chinese mainland was the first to upset the status quo in the Taiwan Strait. This is an attempt to conceal US ambitions to strengthen US-Taiwan relations to make Taiwan better able to resist and contain the mainland. The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018 was a watershed document. It not only allows ports of call by the US navy in Taiwan and for US Pacific Command to receive ports of call by Taiwan, it also requires the Pentagon to submit a report of recommendation to Congress within six months of receiving an arms sale request from Taiwan. This is tantamount to making arms sales to Taiwan a compulsory regulation and indicates that the US's Taiwan policy is becoming more official. Moreover, shortly after the Taiwan Travel Act was adopted, US officials travelled to Taiwan to attend various functions. The US has also supported Taiwan on the international stage and rallied allies including Australia and Japan to the cause. The US has even suggested that a US-Taiwan free trade agreement could be signed and that Taiwan could be included in the US's Indo-Pacific Strategy. The US is intent on having an unsinkable aircraft carrier to restrict China's movements. It is not only seeking to violate China's sovereignty by insisting on freedom of navigation in the South China Sea, but also dreams of crossing the Taiwan Straits to challenge China's core interests. The US is adopting an offensive approach in its strategic game with China.
中美力量對比達到關鍵節點，這是美國對華政策調整的深層原因。一般情況下，崛起國GDP達到霸權國的60%，是後者的容忍極限，兩國容易發生衝突。上世紀70年代的蘇聯、80年代的日本均是在這個節點上遭到美國的打擊，現在輪到中國了。美國精英階層等不少人對中國的認知和心理髮生了根本性變化，公開認爲對華“接觸”政策失敗，懷疑中國“前所未有地靠近世界舞臺中心”意在取代美國成爲新的世界領袖。焦慮也好，憂患意識也罷，美國對華示強漸成跨黨派共識。看來，美國政治精英普遍認爲，“中華民族偉大復興”與“讓美國再偉大”的兩國戰略目標之間存在根本衝突，矛盾難以調和。中美關係的結構性和制度性差異，會不時地置中美關係於如履薄冰的境地。
Rising Chinese power is an underlying reason for the US's change in policy. Historically, the GDP of an upcoming country has been allowed to reach 60% of that of the hegemonic power before the latter takes action. Both the Soviet Union in the 1970s and Japan in the 1980s were brought down a peg or two by the US upon reaching that milestone. Now it is China's turn. Many people in the US elite have fundamentally changed their views and thinking on China. They openly believe that the policy of engagement with China has failed and that China is closer to the center of the world stage than ever before and wishes to replace the US as a new world leader. A bipartisan consensus has been forged out of the sense of urgency this has engendered. It seems that the US political elite believes that there is a fundamental conflict between the two countries' strategic goals of rejuvenating the Chinese nation and making America great again, with contradictions that are difficult to reconcile. Structural and institutional differences between China and the US are bound to put China-US relations on shaky ground from time to time.
不過，美國對華政策尚未最後確定，中美關係挑戰中仍蘊藏着無限機遇，機遇大於挑戰，合作多於分歧。特朗普喜歡攪亂天下而讓美國獲利，但他仍有某種限度，美方似乎還未最終做與華對決的準備。中國8萬億美元的巨大市場，美國內部的理性溫和聲音，使利益集團不會放棄合作的主張。越來越多的青年人，在信息高度自由流動的今天，不致被假新聞、僞與論所矇騙，他們對中國的好感度超過50%，他們纔是中美關係的未來。中美關係經過40多年的接觸、碰撞、管控、合作，形成了相當程度的你中有我、我中有你的融和局面，使中美關係產生了一定程度的不以人的意志爲轉移的內生聚力，打破這種自然規律必將兩敗俱傷。兩國領導人的引領作用成爲中美關係發展的穩定之錨，這在當今時代難能可貴。
The US' China policy is not finalized. There are infinite opportunities within the challenges that frame China-US relations. Opportunities outweigh challenges, and there is more common ground than differences. Trump loves to create chaos for the benefit of the US, but even he has a limit, and it seems unlikely that the US is prepared to go toe-to-toe with China. It is likely that rational and moderate voices in the US as well as interest groups will not want to give up access to China's huge $8 trillion-market. In this era of free-flowing information, fewer young people are deceived by fake news and fabricated public opinion. More than half of them have been shown to have positive feelings towards China. They are the future of China-US contact, confrontation, control, and cooperation that has characterized China-US relations over the past four decades has created a considerable degree of integration between our two countries as well as a certain degree of endogenous convergence not engendered by human will. Messing with this natural law will undoubtedly hurt both parties. The leadership abilities of the heads of state have become the anchor of stability in China-US relations and have proved valuable in the current era.
在這個大變革的時代，中美關係更顯得是一對不可或缺的夥伴關係，對兩國對全球都是如此。管控分歧是漫漫旅途中的家常便飯，合作共贏是雙方的不二選擇。世界秩序的積極演化將由中美關係的健康發展引導。新型國際關係、人類命運共同體或將成爲中美關係新時代的歷史性貢獻。要達到這一最高目標，中美兩國需要相互適應，需要提高境界，需要創新發展思維和路徑。
In this time of great change, China-US relations constitute an indispensable partnership for both parties and the rest of the world. Managing differences is commonplace on long journeys, and cooperation and mutual benefit should be pursued by both sides. The positive evolution of world order depends on healthy China-US relations. Under the new type of international relations, China's policy of a global community with a shared future could be a historic contribution to the new era of China-US relations. To achieve this ultimate goal, China and the US need to understand each other better, clearly define their boundaries, and come up with new ways of thinking and acting.
對手乎？夥伴乎？今天的緊張未必是明天的戰爭。雙方均處在對方戰略棋譜上的首要位置，這應該是中美關係最大的新變化。
Adversaries or partners? Today's tensions do not need to turn into tomorrow's war. Both sides are the focus of each other's strategies. This is the biggest recent change in China-US relations.
