President Donald J. Trump paid a state visit to China along with his cabinet members and a business delegation. This high-level summit between two structurally competing great powers took place from 13th to 15th May 2026. The visit was significant for several reasons, including prospects for economic cooperation and key political issues.

The United States’ attempts to reduce its military and political entanglements in the Middle East, along with rising tensions over Taiwan, were widely identified by analysts as key strategic issues shaping the summit agenda. According to Xi Jinping’s opening remarks, however, the deeper concern was the logic of great-power transition. Xi referred to Thucydides’ account in The History of the Peloponnesian War, where the rise of Sparta challenged the established dominance of Athens. In international relations theory, this reading has come to be known as the “Thucydides Trap,” a framework suggesting that structural tension between a rising and an established power increases the risk of conflict.

“Can China and the United States transcend the so-called ‘Thucydides Trap’ and forge a new paradigm for major-power relations?” – Xi Jinping

“Can China and the United States transcend the so-called ‘Thucydides Trap’ and forge a new paradigm for major-power relations?”

What is the Thucydides Trap?

The Thucydides Trap is a concept derived from Thucydides’ work The History of the Peloponnesian War, in which he describes the dynamics that led to war between Athens and Sparta. As per modern international relations theory, the idea explains how conflict may become more likely when a rising power challenges an established dominant power. The key elements in this interpretation include a growing security dilemma, mutual mistrust, and structural power........

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