It's both because it's good policy. I "want" insofar as I would expect any government to maximize our position via basic game theory. It's inevitable because those who maximize their position are going to be the dominant player over time.
(I posted a similar comment elsewhere but it's short, and relevant here too).
That's not what game theory says. Defecting against everyone you meet is a losing strategy in an iterated multi-actor prisoner's dilemma. Tit-for-tat does much better. Establishing and maintaining mutual trust, to cooperate with those who are willing to cooperate with you, is in a nation's interests.
> Defecting against everyone you meet is a losing strategy
You are changing the topic, subtly and importantly.
Maintaining an operative network to support an information network and flexible operations (either to help or hinder a nation-state) is THE winning strategy.
