The big lesson of WW2 is that you don't need to control territory in order to establish a global economic hegemony. Breaking the opposition's industrial base is sufficient to consolidate power within your own.

We don't want to do an open war with China, but we absolutely do want to cut off their industrial capacity and chain them to our supply routes. So we cut deals with Australia and we foment revolts in Xinjiang and we destabilize the border with India. All in the hope that China's gangbusters growth will lag long enough for our own economy to finally get its shit together after a 40 year Volcker-Shock induced development lag.