THE end of the Cold War has seen tectonic changes in the architecture of international foreign relations. With the Obama pivot to Asia the deployment of United States diplomatic and security initiatives has shifted from NATO nations to SEATO allied countries, specifically the rising superpower, China, which in the eyes of cold warriors is now in the crosshairs of US gunboat diplomacy but in the eyes of realist doves provides a huge window of opportunity for American business. In Cold War days, the Soviet threat threw the US and China together. With the balkanization of the Soviet Union, however, Russia is perceived to be less of a threat than an emerging economic and military dragon in Asia. Accordingly, the US-China mutual defense entente cordial aimed at Russia is no longer a strategic option, even as the geo-economics interplay between the two superpowers continue gaining from strength to strength.