The Trump administration was riddled with strife, perhaps none more vociferous than his vendetta against China. Joe Biden is now left with a web of conflicts to untangle, but with common sense negotiations perhaps the ship will be righted sooner than expected.

The United States is at a turning point. It can heal the wounds inflicted by Donald Trump on China-U.S. relations if it’s willing to reverse its containment strategy and return to civilized principles.

When President-elect Joe Biden is inaugurated next week, he will quickly move to transform most dimensions of US policy. A glaring exception is China. But if Biden maintains outgoing President Donald Trump’s confrontational approach to the world’s second-largest economy, he will come to regret it.

Historically, following a crisis, dialogues at the highest levels between China and the United States are put on hold indefinitely. At present, neither nation seems to be in a hurry for such a meeting. Here are some of the reasons.

The following is the prepared opening remarks by the author at the Hong Kong Forum on US-China Relations, Jan 26-28, hosted by the China-United States Exchange Foundation in partnership with the China Center for International Economic Exchanges.

The United States needs to have greater cooperation with its allies in order to achieve more effective relations with China.

Local and subnational governments play an indispensable role in maintaining healthy relations between the United States and China. By proactively engaging and empowering them, the incoming administration can achieve positive results.

Instead of transactional trade agreements, Biden’s China policy seems to seek concrete change in Beijing’s behavior. With a transatlantic divide between the US and Europe, it might be difficult to sway certain European countries into siding with Washington over Beijing.

A new U.S. policy will emerge in the South China Sea, but only slowly. After his inauguration Biden will pick up where Obama left off, but adding new strategic wrinkles as the U.S. enlists other countries to play its game.

The resumption of talks between China and the United States should be characterized by efficiency and high quality. After many negative twists and turns in recent years, the relationship will eventually find a new model that has not been seen before.