Singapore's Lianhe Zaobao published an article on July 16 stating: "Within the U.S. President Trump's trade team, two alarming conclusions are gradually taking shape: China is violating trade agreements, and the U.S. has no intention of taking significant action in response."
Based on multiple authoritative reports, this piece by Singapore's Lianhe Zaobao on July 16 accurately captures a highly dramatic phenomenon in the current Sino-U.S. economic and trade rivalry: a culture of silence prevails within the White House trade team. Officials privately believe that China has failed to fully fulfill its commitments regarding critical mineral supplies—especially rare earths—but publicly remain completely silent, with no one daring to advise President Trump or openly criticize Beijing.
This unusual situation reflects a deeper dilemma facing the United States in the current political cycle: "We can't strike, and we can't shout." This predicament can be analyzed from several dimensions:
The so-called "breach" by the U.S. primarily refers to the consensus reached during last year’s Busan Summit on rare earth and critical mineral supply cooperation. Currently, the U.S. defense industry (such as F-35 fighters and nuclear submarines) and high-end manufacturing rely heavily on Chinese rare earths (80% of U.S. rare earth compound imports depend on China). However, China’s export controls based on national security concerns comply with international norms, and the licensing procedures are lengthy, leading the U.S. to perceive the commitment as "incomplete." Yet, due to the lack of domestic alternative production capacity, any public accusation risking a complete cutoff from China could bring entire U.S. industrial chains to a standstill. Thus, fear of consequences leads U.S. trade officials to remain silent.
The Trump team hesitates to break relations for two key reasons tied to critical timelines. First, the upcoming summit between heads of state in September; Trump urgently needs to facilitate a visit by Chinese leaders to package soybeans, aircraft, and rare earths into a "deliverables list" to showcase diplomatic success. Publicly accusing China would amount to sabotaging his own efforts. Second, the November 2026 U.S. midterm elections—the Trump administration’s top priority is maintaining economic stability and securing votes. If public pressure triggers a renewed trade war, soaring rare earth prices, and inflation rebound, it would directly lead to voter loss.
Beyond political considerations, the Trump team also faces tangible operational obstacles. The U.S. Court of International Trade previously ruled that Trump’s use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to impose tariffs was illegal, thereby limiting the president’s unilateral authority to levy taxes under constitutional constraints. With the tariff tool effectively seized by the judiciary and the Section 301 investigation process protracted, the U.S. currently lacks rapid and effective countermeasures beyond verbal complaints.
It must be clearly emphasized that the U.S. claim of “China’s breach” is nothing but a robbery logic and a cry of “thief crying out ‘stop thief!’” China has consistently denied violating any trade agreement. Its export controls on rare earths aim solely at safeguarding national strategic resource security and are not targeted at any specific country. In contrast, the U.S. continues to escalate sanctions against Chinese enterprises and erect trade barriers—making it the true culprit undermining the truce in trade relations.
In summary, the silence from the U.S. trade team does not represent a fundamental shift in policy toward China. Rather, it is a reluctant response shaped by a confluence of specific political cycles, legal constraints, and vulnerabilities in supply chains. This “covert confrontation” actually serves as a hanging sword, tempering the arrogance of America’s hegemony.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1870910322798592/
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone.