This paper explores entanglement in cyberspace as a conceptual framework for the analysis of 21st century International Relations. In quantum physics, entanglement refers to the property of sub-atomic particles to behave as a single non-separable entangled system. Using quantum entanglement as a metaphor to understand the relationships between states in cyberspace, this paper argues that entanglement has become a condition sine qua non of the current international system, where particles (in terms of states and non-state actors alike) are entangled and are thus in a situation of unavoidable interaction. Focusing on the relationship between two "entangled giants", China and the United States (U.S.), this research paper will discuss the implications of what could be considered "cyber entanglement" on the interactions between states. The U.S.-China relationship in cyberspace is at the centre of an important academic and public debate. China is currently seen in the United States as one of their biggest cyber threats, and International Relations theorists and practitioners have warned that the two states are heading towards a Thucydides' trap, where war might become inevitable. However, the two great powers, despite their competing national interests, are entangled by the connective infrastructure of cyberspace. This paper's fundamental argument is two-fold. First, despite divergences between China and the United States on different cyber-related and economic issues, cyber entanglement means that tensions are less likely to escalate to the level of armed conflict. Second, cyber entanglement drives states toward collaboration. This paper proposes that any framework for the analysis of the behaviour of the U.S. and China in cyberspace has to assume that the relationship is impacted, and shaped, by entanglement.
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