Since the 2008 global financial crisis, China and the U.S. have entered into a new structure, namely an emerging dual leadership structure, in the Asia-Pacific. This trend represents the future direction of U.S.-China relations.

When US President Donald Trump withdrew the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) this past January, many observers saw that decision as a boon for China. East Asia countries can no longer count on US-supplied public goods to maintain peace and deliver prosperity, they will face some tough choices.

ASEAN’s commitment to regional consensus and to global inclusiveness has been one of the world’s most successful diplomatic initiatives of the past fifty years. While nationalists in China and Vietnam as well as global media remain fixated on sovereignty disputes in the South China Sea, faster growth of the developing world than the developed world is the tectonic trend in the world political economy.

Sending the first US aircraft-carrier combat group to patrol the South China Sea since the Philippines arbitration has unsettled the region. The US military should promote new trust-building with its Chinese counterpart, and the administration can ease tensions with a clear statement on sovereignty over South China Sea features.

Like the confidence-building measures that have maintained peace and stability along the disputed China-India border, a code of conduct agreement with ASEAN will smooth relations and invite new cooperation — without regard to the Philippines’ improper and unilateral appeal for outside arbitration.

Given their economic and geographic proximity to China, Southeast Asian countries are beginning to warm up to the Chinese renminbi. At this stage, however, it would be premature for Southeast Asian governments to do much more than they have already done.

The Chinese position of resolving disputes with a dual-track approach has been accepted by ASEAN countries. The two sides have important common understanding on jointly maintaining peace and stability in the South China Sea, and notions that China is trying to split ASEAN and that China is seeking hegemony in the South China Sea have effectively been deflated.

The three countries must identify areas of cooperation in Myanmar, such as investment, public service projects among others, and foster a viable cooperation mechanism where interests are shared, risked are distributed. A non-competitive approach will contribute to the economic prosperity of Myanmar and the well-being of its people, and will meet the interests of the three countries and the region at large.

While the U.S. calls for respect of the given ruling under the Law of the Sea Convention, of which the U.S. is not a signatory, none of the predicted responses from China and the Philippines have come true. On the contrary, both have opted for ‘strategic restraint,’ choosing to use dialogue in order to find common ground.

It is unlikely that the decision by The Hague on the Philippines case will settle all of these matters. That said, one can envision a path forward, beginning with an immediate freeze on all activities in the disputed territories. That would lower tensions, allowing everyone to take a deep breath.