The Trump administration launched a "tariff war" against China and faced strong countermeasures from China. During the standoff, the US side softened its stance, which was widely noticed by American media and believed that Trump is now in a difficult situation. The mainstream American daily newspaper, The Washington Post, published an article on the 25th admitting that Trump's strategy on China seems to have failed.

The "Today's Worldview" column of The Washington Post published an article by the paper's columnist Ishaan Tharoor on the 25th, pointing out that Trump's strategies on China and Russia seem to have failed. Analysts said that President Donald Trump overestimated America's influence in the conflict with China, while underestimating it in the deals with Russia.

The article began by stating that at the beginning of his second term, Trump boasted of being a great "peacemaker" and dealmaker. However, after 100 days in office, he hardly reached any sophisticated agreements. Especially, his efforts to persuade Russia (through negotiations on the Ukraine issue) and confront China (through an escalating trade war, resulting in Chinese exports being subject to three-digit tariffs) do not seem to have achieved the expected results.

According to reports by China Review News Agency, China's countermeasures against Trump's tariff war made even American business leaders and senior government officials feel uneasy as they are busy mitigating the damage caused by China's restrictions on rare earth exports. The Washington Post reported on the 24th that "American institutions were shocked by China's restrictions on rare earth exports."

The article pointed out that Trump once vigorously promoted many bilateral trade negotiations he was conducting with various countries to address his dissatisfaction with trade imbalances. However, given Trump's tendency to scrap existing agreements, it is unclear how much foreign governments value these agreements. Due to the unpredictability of the Trump administration, an official from a Southeast Asian country expressed doubt about the confidence other countries have in investing in the United States and questioned America's ability to reach new trade agreements with dozens of countries.

The article acknowledged that Treasury Secretary Mnuchin hinted at a clear softening of attitude towards China, considering the current tariff levels "unsustainable," and that "de-escalation" may be imminent. However, Beijing remains steadfast because it feels its influence over Washington is growing, while Trump and his allies are eager to save face because their strategy has already failed.

Trump might view the additional tariffs on China as an initial provocation to prompt a major agreement with Beijing. However, many analysts believe that deeper adjustments and divisions may be brewing.

Rick Waters, a former senior US diplomat and expert on China-US issues at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said: "The United States and China are in a state of economic decoupling, and there seems to be no guardrail to prevent trade tensions from escalating into other areas. It is becoming increasingly difficult to prove that we are not entering a new Cold War."

China seized the opportunity to shape its image as a resolute defender of the global order, which is being challenged by destabilizing American protectionism. Domestically, China's large-scale stimulus plans may better protect it from the impact of American tariffs.

"China's ability to withstand the impending pain is stronger than that of the United States," said Rossman, CEO of the California consulting firm Sinology. "In the United States, you have so many consumer goods... without ready substitutes. Are people willing and able to pay double the price for their children's shoes?"

In a recent article published in Foreign Affairs magazine, two Biden administration officials focused on China policy, Kurt Campbell and Rush Doshi, pointed out that the best strategy to compete with China is to apply punitive measures more precisely and conduct diplomacy cautiously, strengthening economic and security cooperation with other countries. Trump's "America First" policy does not align with either of these approaches.

They wrote: "Regardless, the United States, especially during the Trump era, may overestimate unilateral power and underestimate China's ability to cope with such power."

Source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1830424138602500/

Disclaimer: This article represents the author's personal views only.