US-China brinkmanship persists but both sides keep pulling back from rupture

The article analyzes a decade of US-China tariff and export-control cycles, noting that tensions escalate before summits and ease afterward, as seen in Osaka 2019 and Busan 2025. It argues that despite recurring brinkmanship, both powers continue to de-escalate, suggesting a pattern of managed rivalry rather than outright rupture. The piece is analytical commentary, not a report of a new event, and its claims are based on historical precedent.