THE United States strategy in your commercial policy It is not clear, given the constant gangs in the decisions of its president, Donald Trump. However, at the beginning of the negotiation marathon with dozen countries, an idea begins to emerge with increasing strength: concentrating the commercial war with China and trying to isolate the Asian country through agreements with other commercial partners. In some cases, According to Trump himself in a question that refers to Latin America, I could be attempted to put the countries in the choice of choice between China and the United States.
The Treasury Secretary Scott Bestent, who Criticized Spain’s approach to China barely And then spread a hard and cold press release His meeting with the Minister of Spanish Economy Carlos CorpsIt appears as the architect of that strategy. The first step took the partial respite of the mutual rates so called. Trump left China on the sidelines of the same, which imposed 125% rates that add to those of 20% who already had with the excuse of Fenanil and other additional protectionist measures.
The exemption of the import rates of cell phones, computers and other technological products would not be so much a concession to Asian power and technological giants such as Apple or Dell, to whom these rates have punished hard. In the meantime, Nvidia has been beaten by the export restriction of its integrated H20 circuits, powerful microprocessors, but less than others of the company, which was specifically designed to avoid previous prohibitions.
At the same time, the Trump administration has hardened his message with Beijing this week. After the president himself resisted, the spokesman for the White House, Karoline Leavitt, was very hard at his press conference on Tuesday when he read a statement from the president himself. “The ball is on the Chinese roof. China has to reach an agreement with us. We don’t have to reach an agreement with them,” he said. “There is no difference between China and any other country, unless it is much bigger. And China does not want what we have, what all the countries want: US consumers. Or, in other words, they need our money,” said the spokesperson.
The Treasury Secretary also underlined last week in that direction, although without saving the criticisms of other commercial partners. “They were good military allies, but not perfect economic allies,” said Besunt, who was optimistic about the possibility of reaching agreements and “then contact China as a group”.
The weak point of this topic is that Trump has difficult to repair the trust of his allies. Put the arch in China to surrender to the United States, more than ever, as a high risk operation. Although Spain was at the forefront with the Pedro Sánchez Visit to BeijingThe approach to China as a strategic partner is a European strategy.
Trump, however, seems willing to resort to coercion and force countries to choose from between the two superpowers. In an interview published on Tuesday by Fox News, Trump referred precisely to the fact that the countries of Latin America could be forced to leave the Chinese initiative known as the silk route to reach the agreements with the United States. Before the question if they could be forced to choose from each other, the president replied affirmatively with a conditional: “Yes, it is what Panama has done, what others are doing and what they might think of doing others. Yes, perhaps, they should do it”.
Trump has already obtained certainly Concessions from Mexico and Canada on imports from China In its first barrage of rates in these countries. One of the US worries is that the Asian country is indirect products for the United States after having exported them to other commercial partners of the first world economy. The same reasoning could be extended to negotiations with the countries of the Southern Asian, to whom the Trump government is accused of acting as an extension of Chinese industrial power. Countries such as Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia and Thailand have structures that act as final assembly points for products made in Chinese components, including solar panels, the subject of Trump rates in their first term.
“For our part, we want dumping. Because these Chinese products will end somewhere. I don’t think it is very much to convince them if their largest export market is cut, “Bestent said this week in an interview on Bloomberg TV.
“Great progress” with Japan
China is the main obsession of the president, In the same way that Japan was in the 80s, when Trump – who was then a real estate promoter – began to support the imposition of strong rates on imports from that country. Now, Japan is seen as a potential ally in that battle to isolate China. In fact, Trump himself decided to go this Wednesday in person at the first meeting on rates with Japan. The Asian country has appointed its minister of economic revitalization, Ryosei Akazawa as a negotiator.
This Wednesday is the first negotiation meeting in which the president decided to participate, who did not participate in the meeting of the vice -president of the European Commission, Maroš Šefčovič, with the secretary of trade, Howard Lutnick. “Japan today comes to negotiate rates, the cost of military support and” commercial loyalty “. I will participate in the meeting, together with the secretaries of the treasure and trade. We hope to be able to reach an agreement that is good (excellent!) For Japan and the United States!” Trump actually wrote his social network.
So at the end of the meeting, he highlighted the meeting in the same way. “It is a great honor to have met the Japanese delegation on trade. Great advancement!” He tweeted, without providing more details.
