FROM COOPERATION TO COMPETITION: COMPARING U.S. RESPONSES TO THE RISE OF POST-WAR JAPAN AND CONTEMPORARY CHINA

The United States and China are engaged in great power competition following a period of relative cooperation. Understanding how states transition to great power competition is important for revealing the catalyst of competition and mitigating the potential for great power conflict. The United States’ relationship with post–World War II Japan offers an apt historical comparison from which to observe a similar competitive transition. It also indicates the means by which competition can transition back toward cooperation. The primary time frame for the historical comparison is 1980–2000 for U.S.-Japan competition and 2000–2018 for the Sino-American competition. This thesis finds that both bilateral relationships offer examples of how economic near-peer competition initiates the transition to great power competition with security and political-ideological consequences. The outcome of those security and political-ideological consequences differs in the two cases due to their respective circumstances. Both, however, reveal a cycle of grievance and negotiation between the competing states. Each case also shows that competition can be mitigated through dialogue, engagement, and negotiation.
Lieutenant, United States Navy
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