The China-US rivalry in Asia – especially in the South China Sea – will intensify with the passage of American legislation underlining Washington’s commitment to the region, analysts said. The Asia Reassurance Initiative Act, which US President Donald Trump signed into law this week, signalled that the US wanted to retain its allies and mobilise them to counter China if necessary, the observers said.
Collin Koh, a maritime security specialist at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, said that despite a recent easing tensions, the act’s broad regional scope meant “we would likely see gradual effects impinging on Sino-US rivalry in Southeast Asia”. “We can’t underestimate the potential ramifications of [the act] contributing to the sharpening of the Sino-US rivalry, even if it’s still quite another matter whether the Trump administration will truly follow up,” Koh said.
