During the time the United States was involved in wars with Iraq and Afghanistan and simultaneously faced an economic crisis in the early 2000s, China’s economy grew at an unprecedented speed, surpassing that of Japan in 2010 to become the world’s second largest economy. In response to the changing power dynamics caused by China’s rise, President Obama announced in 2011 his “pivot to Asia,” a rebalancing of U.S. strategic interests and military resources toward the Asia-Pacific region (Tong). Although the pivot reassured America’s Asian allies of its renewed commitment to the region, this U.S. policy initiative deepened the strategic distrust between China and the U.S. Strategic distrust in a bilateral…