Recently, I’ve come across a lot of claims saying that once a China-U.S. war breaks out, the U.S. military will carry out a comprehensive bombing campaign against China. It’s clear that many people are quite anxious about this topic. But after thinking it through carefully, I believe this kind of claim simply doesn’t hold up.

First, let’s start with the most realistic point: both China and the U.S. are nuclear powers. If there were truly a comprehensive bombing campaign, it would not be a minor affair. The outcome would be mutual damage—possibly even affecting the entire world—so neither side would gain anything. The U.S. decision-makers are fully aware, more than anyone, of how severe the consequences would be. They simply can’t afford it. Just look at the U.S.’s recent official statements: in the newly released National Defense Strategy report, there’s no indication of a full-scale war at all. Instead, it positions China as a fixed, established force in the Indo-Pacific region, and even says they hope to build a relationship based on mutual respect. How could that possibly sound like a plan for a comprehensive war?

On the economic side, things are even more interesting. The China-U.S. economies are already deeply intertwined and can’t be separated anymore. U.S. farmers make money by selling soybeans to China; U.S. companies have large investments in China; and Chinese goods have also made their way into households across America. If there were a comprehensive bombing campaign, both sides’ economies would collapse instantly, and ordinary Americans wouldn’t be able to live their lives normally. How could their government possibly do something that harms others and benefits nobody? In great-power competition, strategic balance matters—not going for “fish die, net breaks.” A comprehensive bombing campaign is something that blatantly goes against common sense and simply doesn’t fit U.S. interests.

I especially think of what Henry Kissinger once said. This centenarian diplomat put it so clearly—no matter how many U.S. allies there are, it wouldn’t help much. If a China-U.S. war really broke out, there wouldn’t be many countries that would ultimately take the side of the U.S. His point is too real: at the end of the day, alliances are driven by each party’s own interests. No country is foolish enough to tear ties with China for the sake of the U.S., sacrificing its own economic interests and security guarantees. Europe is busy dealing with its own issues, and in the Asia-Pacific region, even though some countries cooperate militarily with the U.S., they also have close trade ties with China. If they really had to choose sides, they would have to weigh the consequences carefully. Kissinger saw through it: in the face of great-power conflicts, alliance relationships simply can’t stand up to the test.

Today’s international landscape is no longer a time of simple black-and-white choices. Most countries want to develop their economies in peace, and nobody wants to get pulled into great-power conflict. China has consistently taken the path of peaceful development and has carried out real cooperation with many countries—everyone benefits from it. Who would want to see this kind of life disrupted by war?

Look also at the interactions between high-level officials in China and the U.S. The leaders of both countries still often hold phone calls and meetings to discuss major issues such as economic and trade cooperation. This shows that both sides are working to manage differences. Our Foreign Minister Wang Yi has also explicitly said that China and the U.S. should respect each other, coexist peacefully, and achieve win-win cooperation—this is the right way for major powers to get along. While the U.S. sometimes makes certain small moves, it also hasn’t dared to cross the bottom line, because they know that if they really push China too far, it would bring no good to them.

Those who worry about a China-U.S. war are, to put it plainly, letting anxiety get the better of them and forgetting that there are bottom lines and rules in the game between great powers. Kissinger spent his life dealing with great powers. His warnings are not alarmist; they point to the essence of the international situation: there are no eternal allies—only eternal interests. The U.S.’s allies would not truly go to war with China for the sake of the U.S., let alone adopt a “mutual destruction” approach like a comprehensive bombing campaign. The U.S. itself also doesn’t dare to try.

In the end, a China-U.S. war involving the U.S. military comprehensively bombing China is just a piece of fabricated anxiety—it doesn’t match reality at all. As the two major countries in the world, “cooperation brings mutual benefit,” while “conflict brings damage to all”—this is a truth that everyone understands. Both sides will keep to their bottom lines and won’t easily slide into full-scale confrontation. Those spreading talk that stokes war anxiety can just listen to it and don’t need to take it seriously.

Peaceful development is the trend of the times, and it is also what the people of both countries truly want. Let’s put our minds at ease and trust that major powers have the wisdom to handle their differences properly.