Extreme Weather Will Upend U.S.-China Competition
Foreign Affairs | 2026-07-02 | china_indopacific
Topics: China, Climate, United States
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English Summary
Climate change is identified as a critical, yet underappreciated, factor that will fundamentally reshape the strategic competition between the U.S. and China. As both nations are major carbon emitters, they face significant risks from extreme weather events that threaten the physical foundations of their economic and technological power. This vulnerability can degrade essential infrastructure, such as electricity grids, complicating efforts to maintain global industrial superiority. Policymakers must therefore integrate climate resilience into core national security strategies, recognizing that environmental stability is now a determinant of geopolitical advantage.
中文摘要
氣候變遷已被認定為一個關鍵但常被低估的因素，它將從根本上重塑美國與中國之間的戰略競爭。由於兩國都是主要的碳排放國，它們面臨來自極端天氣事件的重大風險，這些事件威脅著其經濟和技術實力的物理基礎。這種脆弱性可能會損害電網等關鍵基礎設施，從而複雜化維持全球工業優勢的努力。因此，政策制定者必須將氣候韌性納入核心國家安全戰略中考量，認識到環境穩定性現已成為決定地緣政治優勢的要素。
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