But it's already well-known, in fact an official part of CCP doctrine, that the intention of economic cooperation was always to build strength while downplaying any notion of China as a threat until the conditions were propitious for China to act more aggressively.

And what of aggressive Chinese actions around the Spratly Islands, which are carried out in violation of a very clear 2016 UNCLOS ruling? What has the US done recently to violate Chinese territorial waters in any similar sort of way?

I actually think that actions by the West over the past ~200 years really set the stage for things that are happening today, but I don't think it's fair to paint China as an innocent actor with pure intentions; they're not.