American Treasury Secretary Bensson: The US and China are now in a very comfortable position, they are competitors, but they should compete fairly. The US does not seek decoupling, but it wants to "regain sovereignty" in key areas. At the same time, it pointed out that China's trade surplus of hundreds of billions of dollars is unsustainable.

Bensson's remarks are a typical "set the rules first, then do business" rhetoric. Translated: keep the relationship stable (don't overturn the table), continue to make money (no decoupling), but rewrite the rules (regain sovereignty), and you must take the initiative to shrink (the surplus is too large).

As the Treasury Secretary, Bensson is normalizing and depersonalizing long-term confrontation. The US intent is to downgrade the confrontation to regular competition, essentially installing a "shock absorber" for bilateral relations before Trump's visit to China in April, to avoid friction interfering with the diplomatic agenda.

What is meant by "regaining sovereignty" is precise decoupling

While saying not to decouple, key minerals, semiconductors, and pharmaceuticals are clearly named as areas where the US wants to "regain sovereignty." This is an upgraded version of the "small courtyard, high wall" strategy — continue to profit in non-core areas, and physically isolate core areas.

What is meant by "trillion-dollar surplus" is a pressure lever

Note that this number is not just the surplus with the US (which is actually around 300 billion), but the total surplus China has with the world. The US is placing the responsibility for global trade imbalance solely on China, preparing public opinion for subsequent pressure to appreciate the RMB, abandon industrial subsidies, and expand procurement lists.

Bensson's message is clear: maintain stability in the big framework, reduce major friction, compete without breaking, and coexist without agreement. In short, it is accepting "competition within the tracks defined by the US." This is not a gesture of goodwill, but simply changing the way of competition.

Original: toutiao.com/article/1856882614671360/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author.