China has denounced the United States government for what it calls its Cold War and zero-sum mentality in its latest national defence strategy, which named China and Russia as “revisionist powers” that “seek to create a world consistent with their authoritarian models”.

The 2018 US National Defence Strategy (NDS) released on Friday said China and Russia sought to shape the world in their authoritarian image and erode American influence, language similar to the US National Security Strategy put out last month.

Associate Professor Li Mingjiang from the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies told The Sunday Times that the latest NDS shows the US has adopted a new posture towards China that might result in tougher policies in areas where the two sides disagree.

Prof Li said America’s new posture partially reflects its shift in priorities, as the threat of global terrorism has lessened with a dismantled Islamic State in Syria and Iraq (ISIS), while the situation in Iraq and Afghanistan has remained stable.

But he added that it is unclear whether the tougher posture will translate into action on the ground, such as greater US military presence in the Asia-Pacific, as resources remain an issue.

President Donald Trump “is more interested in domestic affairs and less keen to expand US international influence”, he said. “I don’t yet see a strong desire on the part of Trump to enhance American predominance in the Asia-Pacific.”

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