Reality check will show double trap is avoidable

Top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi's call for "American friends" to "brush up" on World War II history may not ring any bells with Washington, because, unlike then, the two countries today are not fighting shoulder to shoulder against a common enemy.

Instead, they find themselves pitted against each other in a murky, yet nonetheless increasingly touted, narrative about the transfer of global leadership.

US President Donald Trump's isolationist "America First" inaugural address and Chinese President Xi Jinping's pro-globalization speech in Davos seem to have indelibly reinforced that narrative for some.