China waits and watches as the US fights all its tigers at once

The bombs falling on Iran have extinguished any remaining doubt. The US-Israeli military campaign has ignited a major regional war. This explosion of violence is the ultimate rebuke to a central promise of US President Donald Trump’s second term: that America could disengage from distant quagmires to focus on confronting China. Over a year into this administration, the strategic picture affirms the conclusion I reached last summer: America’s hoped-for single-minded containment of China lies in... AdvertisementUS-China relationsOpinionWorld OpinionWenran JiangOpinion | China waits and watches as the US fights all its tigers at onceFar from freeing up resources to focus on China, Trump’s administration finds itself fighting fires on several fronts, sapping its resources3-MIN READ3-MINWenran JiangPublished: 9:30am, 5 Mar 2026The bombs falling on Iran have extinguished any remaining doubt. The US-Israeli military campaign has ignited a major regional war. This explosion of violence is the ultimate rebuke to a central promise of US President Donald Trump’s second term: that America could disengage from distant quagmires to focus on confronting China.Over a year into this administration, the strategic picture affirms the conclusion I reached last summer: America’s hoped-for single-minded containment of China lies in tatters. The president, who once envisioned a grand disengagement to confront Beijing, now finds himself forced to orchestrate a high-stakes visit. This is not born of strength, but of stark necessity – a tacit admission that the United States is overextended and requires a pause on its most formidable front.The war with Iran is the fiercest new “tiger” in a menagerie of conflicts that has inverted the administration’s fundamental premise, having restarted a major war that threatens to draw in proxies from Lebanon to Yemen and destabilise the entire region. In Europe, the Ukraine war grinds into its fifth year. Trump’s boasts of a swift resolution have dissolved into the grim reality of a prolonged, costly commitment he now presides over. The intervention in Venezuela simmers, threats against Cuba have resurfaced and the Gaza conflict persists. Rather than freeing resources, his presidency is ensnared in a web of multi-front crises, each sapping strength.AdvertisementEven the trade war has backfired; the Supreme Court ruling that his tariffs overstepped his authority has clipped his wings, exposing the limits of unilateralism.The goal of rallying traditional allies into a cohesive front against China has been undermined by the “America first” impulse. Now, as Washington needs them most, these nations are engaging in “calculated hypocrisy”.AdvertisementTheir rush to engage Beijing – the parade of leaders from France’s Emmanuel Macron and Britain’s Keir Starmer to Canada’s Mark Carney and Germany’s Friedrich Merz – has a clear logic: economic hedging and risk mitigation. Even as they seek this “third path”, their transactional visits stop well short of challenging the foundational US security alliance – a loyalty reaffirmed by their pro-American statements on the war with Iran. 02:39Rallies held in major cities to celebrate news of the death of Iran’s Ayatollah Ali KhameneiRallies held in major cities to celebrate news of the death of Iran’s Ayatollah Ali KhameneiAdvertisementSelect VoiceSelect Speed0.8x0.9x1.0x1.1x1.2x1.5x1.75x00:0000:001.00x