Diplomacy should focus on neighbors

Which relationship is more important for China, that with the United States or with its neighbors?

The Chinese authorities used to be quite ambiguous on the question by stating both are essential, but with the nation's rise and growth in comprehensive capabilities, it is necessary to give a clear answer.

The question has arisen because of a geopolitical fact, namely the US as the only superpower in this world is not one of China's neighbors. It is a common view among certain scholars that the US should be the key part of China's diplomacy, because if the relationship is improved, China's rise would not meet any effective resistance. For others, peripheral diplomacy is more essential because without its neighbors' support China's rise will be a bubble.