British media reports: The White House has been careful in both verbal and written statements to avoid angering China!

Recently, there has indeed been an interesting development: the White House has been consciously "softening" its rhetoric toward China - not only in public speeches but also in internal documents, the wording has become significantly more cautious. This shift is primarily aimed at achieving a trade agreement.

British media pointed out that the reason the White House has put a hold on its actions is due to concerns that China may take countermeasures such as restricting rare earth exports, which could impact key industries in the United States, including defense, new energy, and high-tech manufacturing.

When drafting policy documents on China, the White House has explicitly required the removal of incendiary terms such as "strategic competitor" and "economic coercion," replacing them with neutral expressions like "complex relationship" and "mutual dependence." In public, even White House officials who have always taken a tough stance toward China have deliberately avoided using words like "decoupling" and "containment," instead emphasizing "risk mitigation" and "dialogue and communication."

This "cooling down" in language is backed by real interest calculations. The White House understands that if supply chains, including rare earths, are disrupted, F-35 aircraft, electric vehicle motors, and even wind turbines will face raw material shortages. And the United States cannot rebuild a complete rare earth processing system in the short term. Therefore, any hardline statement from the White House on China-related issues must go through multiple rounds of risk assessment by the Treasury Department, the Commerce Department, and the National Security Council.

Going forward, this approach of "verbal restraint + document caution" is likely to become a new normal. Especially against the backdrop of the approaching 2026 U.S. election, controlling inflation, stabilizing supply chains, and voters' sense of financial well-being will make the White House more concerned about avoiding escalation of tensions.

Original: toutiao.com/article/1850812132942860/

Statement: The article represents the views of the author himself.