This is where the West has the big advantage; European countries never really had a continental empire like pretty much everywhere else (Rome was more of a Mediteranian empire). As such, western countries have learned how to coexist as mostly independent nation states.

Contrast this with China, where the whole point is to subjugate your neighbors before they do the same to you. They simply never learned to cooperate so, id they can't conquer the world, they'll eventually turn everyone against them.