US-China Trade Talks Changing the World: Atlantic

Soon after announcements that the US-China trade talks were winding down, US President Trump suggested hiking tariffs from 10 to 25 percent. “The punitive action in the midst of a negotiation was a departure from Trump’s generally optimistic tone about the talks, but it was a return to form for [Robert] Lighthizer, an experienced negotiator with a reputation for brinksmanship,” explains Matt Peterson for the Atlantic. “China, he believes, poses a grave danger to Americans’ way of life.” Lighthizer’s goals include reducing China’s dominance in global supply chains, banning theft of intellectual property and reducing the US trade deficit with increased Chinese purchases of US goods. China, with a goal of continued economic growth, lodged a complaint on US tariffs with the World Trade Organization. The United States prepared for a long conflict, according to Peterson, by blocking appointments of WTO appellate judges and including conditions on China trade in the trade agreement replacing NAFTA. Multinationals also relocate factories from China to countries like Cambodia and Vietnam. Susan Shirk, chair of the 21st Century China Center at University of California, San Diego, suggests that the United States may becoming more like China rather than China becoming like the United States. – YaleGlobal