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The escalation of the US-China trade war on Friday – with each country facing new tariffs – is part of a broader struggle to decide which country will shape the 21st century's economic and geopolitical future . President Trump is right to refuse to lift the white flag of capitulation.
Fortunately, few people expect the war between China and the United States to break out, instead our two countries are waging an economic war, with trade policy at the center of the battle. And, just like climbing into a shooting war, the hostile actions taken by one of the parties in our trade war with China will usually prompt the other to take action retaliation.
That's why, when China announced Friday that it would increase customs duties on imports from the United States, worth $ 75 billion, President Trump was right to react the same day .
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"From October 1, the 250 billion dollars of goods and products from China, currently taxed at 25%, will be taxed at 30%," Trump commented on Twitter after China imposed itself in the United States . "In addition, the remaining $ 300 billion of goods and products from China, which were taxed at 10 percent as of September 1, will now be taxed at 15 percent."
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Some critics of Trump say that the United States should retreat from this fight. They argue that Trump should not face a rising China, because bilateral trade is good for both countries and because the tariffs will affect US consumers and businesses with higher prices and destroy American jobs. Some have even warned that the trade war could lead to a dangerous and deadly military confrontation.
I say that Trump's critics are wrong.
The Trump administration has embarked on a path to ensure that every time Beijing acts as a rogue regime, there will be costs.
In fact, the time has come for the United States to defeat China for years of trade violations, intellectual property theft and unreasonable demands that former US presidents have complained about, but no one. Have done nothing.
It is time for us to finally have somebody in the White House who has the audacity to take up the challenge of China and who has the good ideas of foreign policy to do it.
President Trump likes to call his style of foreign policy "America First". This policy is just common sense. America – like any other nation – should place its own interests and those of its citizens ahead of those of other nations or its secondary concerns.
This means that China must face and face, as international intimidation has become.
Faced with a policy of weakness and appeasement when President Obama was in power, China's power, economic power, and military power grew exponentially in the eight years leading up to President Trump's inauguration. . If Trump simply continued to implement Obama's policy, China would always strengthen at the expense of the United States.
For Trump, there is simply no other choice. There will be costs in the form of higher prices for products that Americans buy and we will suffer from reduced exports to China because of higher tariffs. But in the long run, these costs are well worth a short-term penalty for long-term gains.
If only President Obama had resisted China's rise from 2009, President Trump would not be in the position he is in today by asking the American people to make difficult sacrifices.
Clearly, Obama has had ample opportunity to put Beijing on notice. For example:
Obama has done nothing to prevent China from building an impressive military machine. China has developed weapons capable of sinking US Navy aircraft carriers, as well as missiles capable of destroying most American bases in Asia and canceling military capabilities or our allies. Instead of spending more on defense, Obama cut military spending to the limit – something Trump had to fix at great expense.
Obama has not prevented China from making land claims all over Asia. Whether in the South or East of the China Sea, on Taiwan or on small islands and reefs, China's goal was to make Asia-Pacific in a broad sense its own sphere of influence giant. In response, Obama proclaimed a so-called "pivot to Asia". The pivot seemed great, but never happened. He lacked resources, was devoid of strategy and did not realize anything. China has put even more pressure on Obama's weakness, building islands to bolster his claims in the South China Sea and building military bases.
Obama did nothing after China hacked into the US government's Office of Management and Budget. China has stolen an incredible 23 million personal records of federal officials, many of whom work in intelligence and national security establishment.
Obama did not react when China broke the rules of the World Trade Organization. China has given hundreds of billions of dollars in illegal subsidies to domestic industries to try to dominate the global economy. Called Made in China 2025, this initiative was designed to ensure that China's electric cars, solar panels, 5G equipment and artificial intelligence technologies dominate not only China's domestic market, but also China's Mondial economy. At the same time, China – as well as its state-owned companies – used all sorts of methods to steal US intellectual property worth hundreds of billions of dollars through cyber espionage or by making access to the Chinese market to such information.
Although the list above is far from complete, the point is clear: the Chinese government is a bad actor who has taken advantage of aggressive behavior that strengthens its power to the detriment of others, especially the United States.
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The Trump administration has embarked on a path to ensure that every time Beijing acts as a rogue regime, there will be costs.
The American people should know, as the President has tried to explain, that this test of the will could cost them a fortune. The good news is that the American people know its history and understand the need for a shared sacrifice for the greater good.
A previous generation of American leaders opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War when they attempted to dominate the world. The US presidents then defended the Soviet Union during the Cold War. And more recently, our leaders began the fight against international terrorism after the attacks of September 11, 2001.
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At present, President Trump is resisting China's efforts to dominate the 21st century with economic, military and diplomatic struggles. He deserves the support of every American, regardless of his political party, in this vital enterprise.
Nothing can beat a United America under the same goal and vision. China must understand this or learn the lesson the hard way.
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