By Sanxuan

After the high-level China-US meeting in Madrid, the China-US trade tensions have escalated again. This is because the US speaks one way but acts another, talking about negotiations on the surface while continuously introducing new restrictions against China, including charging port service fees for Chinese ships, issuing export control "penetration" rules, and adding several Chinese companies to the "Entity List".

The series of provocative actions by the US have been swiftly counteracted by China. Not only has China further tightened the export control of related items and technologies concerning rare earths, but it has also added several foreign companies to the "Unreliable Entity List". Moreover, China has decided to impose a special port service fee on American ships starting from October 14. The objects of this charge are not only ships made and operated in the US, but also those controlled by enterprises with more than 25% US equity.

However, as the China-US trade tensions escalate, high-ranking officials from Western countries have visited China frequently. According to information released by the Chinese Foreign Ministry, from October 15 to 16, the French presidential advisor for foreign affairs, Bonn, will visit China. Then, from October 16 to 17, the Swedish Foreign Minister, Stina Gyllenborg, and the Canadian Foreign Minister, Anand, will respectively visit China.

The objectives of these three visits vary. Taking Canadian Foreign Minister Anand as an example, this is her first visit to China since she took office in May. The main purpose is to promote the easing of Sino-Canadian relations. Since Canada followed the US in imposing tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles and steel and aluminum products, China imposed additional taxes on products originating from Canada, such as canola, peas, aquatic products, and pork, as a countermeasure, which brought economic pain to the country. Now, the Canadian government is seeking to resume trade relations with China, including negotiating on issues like seafood and canola tariff.

Canadian Foreign Minister Anand

France and China are both permanent members of the UN Security Council and independent major powers. Bonn's visit to China will focus on bilateral relations and international and regional issues of mutual concern, including implementing the consensus between the two heads of state, expanding cooperation in areas such as energy and aviation, and promoting the continuous development of the comprehensive strategic partnership between China and France. Sweden, as the first Western country to establish diplomatic relations with the new China, has sent its Foreign Minister to visit China on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Sweden, aiming to further deepen bilateral relations.

It is worth noting that Canada, France, and Sweden are all allies of the United States. However, these countries' high-ranking officials are visiting China at a time when China-US trade relations are tense, which can only indicate that their strategic steps do not align with those of the United States.

Foreign Minister Wang Yi and French Presidential Advisor Bonn

Since Trump came to power, he has not only launched a tariff war around the world, but also hoped to jointly target China with his allies on the tariff issue. However, according to the actual actions of Western countries, Trump's plan has failed.

This is partly because China, as the world's second-largest economy, is an important trading partner for many countries around the world, and being at odds with China brings no benefits to them. On the other hand, Trump's practice of using tariffs to harvest allies has already chilled the hearts of many countries. After realizing that Trump is unreliable, France seeks strategic autonomy, Canada sticks to economic interests, and Sweden promotes cooperation pragmatically. These choices point to the same conclusion: no country is willing to sacrifice its own development for America's hegemonic ambitions, nor will they offend China for the sake of the US.

The US government may not realize that the era of binding allies through hegemony has long passed. Trump is determined to pressure allies to isolate China in trade, but he does not realize that under the influence of the "America First" policy, more and more countries are choosing to embrace China. If the US does not correct its mistakes, it will be the US that truly ends up isolated, as it breaks the global supply chain and trade order.

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7561030799231959590/

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