China-U.S. competition not new Cold War: British scholar

Photo taken on Sept. 24, 2015 shows the national flags of China (R) and the United States as well as the flag of Washington D.C. on the Constitution Avenue in Washington, capital of the United States. (Xinhua/Bao Dandan)

ATHENS, July 27 (Xinhua) -- The competition between China and the United States is mistakenly labelled as a New Cold War, British professor Martin Jacques has said.

In an article published on the Greek website Hellenic Shipping News on Monday, Jacques said the tension between the two countries should not be called a new Cold War as it lacks the essential elements that define the U.S.- Soviet Union conflict.

A defining characteristic of the Cold War is the division of the world into two blocs, he said, adding that military competition is another feature of the old Cold War.

The world is witnessing a new kind of competition between China and the United States, which embraces a wide range of issues, including the economy, digital technology, governance, leadership, climate change and pandemics.

Jacques believes that the competition will not be the same as the old Cold War which was "a binary conflict in the Manichean tradition, with the final outcome being a winner and a loser."

"Essential to any settlement will be a new synthesis between China and the U.S., a new kind of relationship, rather than the knock-out punch which ended the first Cold War," he said.