The question of great-power competition for global leadership between the United States and China appears to be leaving its mark in the twenty-first century. In this regard, these developments in the United States and the Western world are called the new Cold War. The policy elites in the U.S. State Department regard China as an existential threat to America. They also see that China will overtake the United States the first chance it gets, especially as it aims to become the world's biggest economy within the next 10 years.
In this context, American elites offer strategies and policies to halt, slow, or control the rise of China. The elites of American hawks (the anti-China party) suggest more extreme solutions, arguing that China must be eliminated before it can reach a military superiority capable of confronting the United States.
American hawks, whom I call the "anti-China party" (reckless hawks), have the backing of both the Republican and the Democratic parties.
The U.S. Congress is also passing several laws to eliminate Chinese influence, and it is clear that these processes are ongoing full-speed ahead. The United States is trying to drag all its allies from Western and non-Western countries to its own line. It is also working to build a global anti-China alliance. The Biden administration classified this project as democratic states against tyrannical dictatorships. Certainly, many countries that the United States is trying to include in this anti-Chinese alliance do not fit this description (democratic).
The Taiwan crisis is the potential spark of war in the rivalry between the two superpowers (America and China) because Taiwan is a red line for China. This is the reason why China is responding violently to U.S. attempts to support and enhance Taiwan's defense capability. Also, US President Joe Biden has said many times that his country will defend Taiwan by military means if it is invaded by China. The White House is trying to patch up Biden's statements and correct them, but this has not brought any noticeable result. The United States and China know well what lies behind the Taiwan curtain.
Meanwhile, do the American people share the same feelings of hostility towards Beijing as the anti-China party (hawks)? What is the view of the people of Canada and Britain on this, especially since these two countries are the closest allies of the United States?
Polls have shown that the (average) American, Canadian and British people do not agree with the ideas of the anti-China party. The German Marshall Foundation and other European Atlantic institutions conducted opinion polls and surveys in Canada, America, and 12 European countries, where the results regarding China came as somewhat of a shock.
The results of the survey showed that the United States is the largest international player at the present time, but that China will overtake America in the next five years. Respondents to the survey were asked how they see their country's relationship with China, with 25 percent answering that China is a partner (ally) they can deal with. And 29 percent of respondents saw China as a competitor to their country. While 18 percent saw China as an opponent. And 29 percent answered, "I don't know."
15 percent of respondents in the United States see China as a "partner", 34 percent see China as a "competitor", 32 percent see it as an "adversary" and 19 percent answered, "I don't know." Meanwhile, In Britain, 12 percent regard China as a "partner", 32 percent see it as a "competitor" and 23 percent as a "dispute". While in Canada, 19 percent (partner), 28 percent (competitor), and 24 percent (adversary)
The United States of America, Britain, and Canada speak the same language and have similar cultural heritage, and are classified among the "Anglosphere" countries. The United States is the most powerful country among the Anglosphere group that considers China the biggest enemy. Certainly, the results of the opinion poll that we mentioned above express the feelings of ordinary citizens towards China and do not express the feelings of the current governments of Britain, Canada, and America.
Also, the answers of respondents to the poll about what kind of measures they see fit in the event that China intervenes militarily in Taiwan do not bode well for the anti-China party. The results showed that 26 percent of Americans and Canadians and 28 percent of Britons believe that diplomatic talks should be given priority. The percentage of those who believe that sanctions should be taken against China was 40 percent in Britain, 39 percent in Canada, and 25 percent in the United States.
Within the same opinion poll, which was conducted in 14 countries, the results about sending weapons and soldiers to Taiwan to deter Chinese interference were as follows: the percentage of those who saw the need to send weapons was 4 percent, and the percentage of those who answered that it was necessary to send soldiers was 2 percent.
The percentages in the United States were 8 percent for sending weapons and 7 percent for sending soldiers. In Britain, 5 percent for sending weapons and 3 percent for sending soldiers, and in Canada, 5 percent supports sending weapons, and 4 percent said they were okay with sending soldiers.
