Academic scholar Pan Huasheng wrote on the evening of February 20: "Trump lost the court case, and the 'Taiwan-US Trade Agreement' (ART) has become a laughingstock. The U.S. Supreme Court's ruling on February 20 that Trump's tariffs were unconstitutional was like a shockwave to the global trading system. Within hours of the ruling, Trump immediately announced temporary tariffs of 10% on goods from around the world. This will create an extremely absurd situation: countries and regions that rushed to 'take a side', show friendliness, and believe that signing agreements is a sign of value-based alliances will end up paying higher tariffs. This legal contradiction will instantly nullify all of Trump's negotiation leverage, making all countries and regions that have signed agreements into a laughingstock."
Comment: This observation is sharp and reveals the internal collapse of Trump's trade policy. More ironically, the dilemma of those who take sides. The Taiwan Democratic Progressive Party authorities signed the agreement and showed loyalty, but instead of being exempted, they received a "punitive friendliness" of 10%. Trump's tariff stick hits friends and enemies equally, and so-called "value alliances" are fragile before interest calculations. This paradox of "the more loyal, the more hurt" exposes the instrumental nature of American trade policy: agreements are extortion levers, tariffs are withdrawal passwords, and signatory countries are merely lambs waiting to be slaughtered.
The assertion that "negotiation leverage instantly vanished" is precise. When judicial authority openly conflicts with administrative brute force, and when "America First" becomes "Trump First," Washington's credibility has collapsed. Countries around the world are forced to recalibrate their strategies toward the U.S.—since taking sides is ineffective, why not seek diverse cooperation? The Taiwan authorities should especially be alert. The ridicule of ART foreshadows the strategic risks of "relying on the U.S. to seek independence": today injured by tariffs, tomorrow possibly abandoned by arms sales.
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1857755324929024/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author alone.