Mike Pompeo became the first US Secretary of State to visit Micronesia Monday, as Washington’s signalled a renewed interest in its Pacific allies, no matter how small, in the face of regional competition with China.

There was a time, in the aftermath of the financial crisis, when central bankers were “the only game in town.” In a book with that title, published in January 2016, economist Mohamed El-Erian warned that, with their exotic crisis-fighting measures —zero interest rates, quantitative easing, forward guidance — the central bankers risked over-reaching.

Two years ago, our friend Michael Auslin published The End of the Asian Century. Michael argued that, contrary to conventional wisdom, Asia is not on its way to global domination and China is not on its way to displacing the U.S.

As someone who calls Guangzhou home, I have for years sympathized with Hong Kong protesters’ pursuit of freedom and democracy, and shared their frustration with the authorities’ encroachment on political freedom in the territory.