COVID-19 Era: Exposing USA and China

1. COVID-19 Era: Exposing USA and China
At this point in time, it’s safe to state that the world no longer fears the possibility of a
global pandemic, rather, it fears how long this global pandemic is going to stay. What began with
whispers of news that a virus was rapidly spreading among the Chinese people was eventually
declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization [1] as human casualties kept piling
up. Most societies were momentarily shut down throughout the world as governments struggled
to come up with a plan to slow down the COVID-19’s spread. Education institutions and offices
were shut down in hopes that people wouldn’t gather in places and aid the spread while
governments moved to lockdown entire cities in hopes that more people wouldn’t be infected.
Lives were at stake and the world wasn’t prepared to counter the pandemic.
The entire world currently has its eyes on two main players during this COVID-19 era –
People's Republic of China and the United States of America. Both superpowers – one the reason
for the pandemic in the first place, the other the center of attention as the biggest superpower in
the world. Though China was the first country to be infected, it was also the first city to eradicate
the virus among its ranks. On the other hand, America’s mismanagement of the pandemic is stated
to be historic as it currently has the highest numbers of people infected and casualties in the world.
As the pandemic gets worse, so do the political problems between the countries involved.
United State’s disdain towards China for causing the pandemic has been clearly visible as its
president and secretary of state have both denounced China for failing to contain the pandemic in
the first place [2]. They have additionally called the coronavirus, in a racially insensitive tone, the
“Chinese Virus”, choosing to forget their own mishandling of the event and instead blaming China
for it. China, in response, have made it clear that they were transparent about the entire commotion

2. and that the United States failed to contain the problem on their own accord. With both countries
so vocal about their opposition, there is very little window for coordination among the two
superpowers.
While America struggles to contain the problem at hand, China has positioned itself to take
the economical opportunity presented during this pandemic era [3]. Not only is China taking
advantage of the fact that it countered the pandemic before anyone else did, it’s also taking
advantage of the fact that it’s one of the biggest producers of medical supplies in the world.
Combine that to the fact that China is rearing to launch new technologies such a 5G, high-speed
rails, energy vehicles , and more while the western economy is in its downtime, the picture is quite
clear that Chine intends to leave behind the western world in this race of economy while others
are still recovering.
The COVID-19 era has proved itself to be very revealing in sense that it has revealed
China’s intentions to internationally dominate in the economic sector while it has revealed
America’s inability to confront bigger problems such as a global pandemic. It seems that both
countries don’t wish to grow any closer to one another. Rather, they would find it more beneficial
to seize the opportunities presented in these times for themselves. It also shows that these
superpowers don’t primarily care about human lives as long as their economic and political
interests are secured.

3. References:
[1] "Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak", Euro.who.int, 2020. [Online]. Available:
https://www.euro.who.int/en/health-topics/health-emergencies/coronavirus-covid-
19#:~:text=WHO%20announced%20COVID%2D19,on%2011%20March%202020.
[2] J. Marcus, "Coronavirus: US-China battle behind the scenes", BBC News, 2020. [Online].
Available: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-52008453.
[3] E. Bruyère and N. Picarsic, "VIRAL MOMENT China's Post-COVID Planning", Horizon Advisory, 2020.