The Contentious U S.-China Trade Relationship Council on Foreign Relations

Taiwan’s KMT-drafted constitution continues to recognize China, Mongolia, Taiwan, Tibet, and the South China Sea as part of the ROC. The KMT does not support Taiwan’s independence and has consistently called for closer ties with Beijing. Morrison joined US President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Thursday morning, Australia time, to announce the new policy. The plan, which Biden called “historic,” doesn’t explicitly mention China but is clearly directed at Beijing. “Until there is a new equilibrium in the international balance of power, I think the relationship is going to be tense,” she said.

China Increases Military Spending

Beijing, however, has interpreted these moves how to write rfp for software as a creeping strategy for eventual recognition of Taiwanese independence. Washington should seek ways to balance deterrence against a Chinese military strike on Taiwan with reassurance that the U.S. does not and will not support any unilateral Taiwanese move toward independence. An example of the ineffective use of leverage are the trade tariffs that were imposed by the Trump administration and remain in place.

Nixon Visits China

The Biden administration argues that China’s subsidies and incentives to the domestic steel and aluminum industry artificially lower the prices of Chinese products, thereby undercutting US producers. China’s Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) announced temporary anti-dumping measures on propionic acid (PA) imports from the US, effective April 20, 2024. US companies importing PA will be required to provide tariff deposits at a rate of 43.5 percent to China Customs. In his meeting with Wang Xiaohong, the two reviewed commitments made by the two sides to collaborate on counter-narcotics efforts, in particular the disruption of the trade and manufacturing of synthetic drugs such as fentanyl, one of the breakthroughs made during the Xi-Biden meeting in November. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has met with President Xi Jinping, Foreign Minister Wang Yi, and Minister of Public Security Wang Xiaohong during a three-day visit to China, holding “in-depth, substantive, and constructive discussions”. The US is proposing to increase tariffs on 14 Chinese goods, targeting renewable technologies, semiconductors, and healthcare products in particular.

In an essay for Foreign Policy, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton outlines a U.S. “pivot” to Asia. Clinton’s call for “increased investment—diplomatic, economic, strategic, and otherwise—in the Asia-Pacific region” is seen as a move to counter China’s growing clout. President Barack Obama announces the United States and eight other nations have reached an agreement on the Trans-Pacific Partnership—a multinational free trade agreement. Obama later announces plans to deploy 2,500 marines in Australia, prompting criticism from Beijing.

Washington and Beijing have established roughly a dozen working groups on a wide range of topics, and the two governments now have normal interactions at the cabinet and working levels. So far there has been one recent congressional delegation, how to become a video game developer in October 2023, and there likely will be more in 2024. Communication does not necessarily generate momentum for extensive cooperation, but it provides pathways for reducing misunderstanding about policies and broader developments in both countries and elsewhere.

Cross-strait tensions have escalated since the election of former Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen in 2016. Tsai refused to accept a formula that her predecessor, Ma Ying-jeou, endorsed to allow for increased cross-strait ties. Meanwhile, Beijing has taken increasingly aggressive actions, which includes flying fighter jets near the island.

The tariffs on 95 goods included in the 11th batch of tariff-exempted US goods will continue to be waived until December 31, 2023. The tariffs on US goods were imposed as a countermeasure to the US Section 301 tariffs on Chinese goods. The sanctions mean that US citizens and people in the US (including those transiting within the US) are prohibited from engaging in transactions with these entities unless they have been authorized to do so by the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC). Meanwhile, Blinken told President Xi that President Joe Biden had stated that “the United States and China have an obligation and responsibility to manage our relationship” and that this is “in the interest of the United States, in the interests of China, and in the interest of the world”. Chinese and US officials have increased bilateral engagement in recent months, signaling that the two countries are striving to make a breakthrough in the frosty relations.

• A handful of other countries, including Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom, also refuse to send officials to the games.
• However, experts view the DPP’s success in recent elections, and unprecedented third term win, as a rebuke of Beijing.
• As part of China’s entry into the WTO, U.S. negotiators demanded a temporary safeguard that could be used to limit imports from China, but this was hardly used before it expired twelve years later.
• Given the previous dearth of communication, discussion itself will be valuable, but before long it will be reasonable to expect the two sides to refine their agenda in each working group and gradually shift from consultations to negotiations that deliver substantive results.
• Companies have been spooked not just by geopolitical tensions, particularly Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 that highlighted Europe’s dependency on Moscow for energy, but growing risks in China, such as the possibility of raids on companies and detentions of executives.

The release states that the purpose of the export controls is to “protect U.S. national security and foreign policy interests” and will “restrict the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC’s) ability to both purchase and manufacture certain high-end chips used in military applications”. On the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference on Saturday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson and former foreign minister Wang Yi held an informal meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to discuss a variety of security issues, including the so-called “balloon incident” and the Russia-Ukraine war. China has stated strong opposition to the further tightening of chip export controls, calling for their removal. Wang also held two rounds of meetings with Secretary of State Antony Blinken, in which “Both sides agreed to work together to achieve a meeting between the two heads of state in San Francisco”, per the Foreign Ministry. The two sides committed to engaging in various forms of communication, including “China-US maritime affairs consultations, China-US military control and non-proliferation consultations, China-US foreign policy consultations, and China-US coordination on disability affairs”. They also discussed signing a memorandum of understanding on cooperation on disability affairs in the near future.

This Act will have to be passed by the Senate before being signed into law by President Joe Biden. Answering a media question on the Biosecure Act, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning said that the bill was “discriminatory” and called on the US to “respect the principles of market economy and trade rules” and “stop suppressing Chinese companies bounce trading strategy under various pretexts”. Department of the Treasury has added two Chinese entities to its Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list. This action targets companies allegedly involved in facilitating weapons procurement and smuggling activities for the Houthi movement in Yemen. The entities are Shenzhen Boyu Imports and Exports Co., Ltd. and Shenzhen Jinghon Electronics Limited.

U.S. Indicts Chinese Nationals

Moreover, the United States’ relations with allies in Asia and Europe have improved dramatically in general and with respect to their approach toward China in particular. Analysis of the challenge China poses on economic and national security issues sounds increasingly similar whether one is in Tokyo, Berlin, Brussels, Washington, or other advanced market democracies. The summit meeting between Presidents Joe Biden and Xi Jinping held in November near San Francisco, just in advance of the APEC Economic Leaders’ Week, was the culmination of a year-long process that calmed the waters. The two sides announced a range of deliverables on economic and security issues and tried to convey a sense that they could effectively manage their differences. Although the United States and China are still engaged in a comprehensive contest for power and over setting the global rules of the game, guardrails are gradually being created, and as a result, the likelihood of the most disastrous outcomes has receded. Moreover, even though the chances of a genuine thaw that resolves fundamental differences and leads to greater cooperation are low, there also are underappreciated sources of structural stability that could keep relations from further deteriorating in the coming years.

The 81 products include some shrimp, timber, electric vehicle batteries, microscope, and medical testing instruments. China’s Ministry of Finance announced to extend a tariff exemption for 81 products imported from the US. The tariff exemption, which was due to expire on September 16, 2021, has now been extended until April 16, 2022, according to Tariff Commission Announcement 2021 No.7. The prospect of meeting and bilateral talks offers some assurance that both sides are willing to step up diplomatic coordination despite the tensions rising between the global powers. The officials stressed they were not advocating for decoupling but wanted businesses and academics to understand that the Chinese government has a sweeping national plan to dominate in these fields.

After trade talks break down, the Trump administration raises tariffs from 10 to 25 percent on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods. The administration deserves credit for putting meat on the bones of its three-pronged strategy of “invest, align and compete,” enunciating the goal of de-risking while maintaining extensive economic ties, and resuming extensive dialogue. This begins by further articulating how the United States aims to strengthen and reform the rules-based international order and then, on that basis, how relations with China should be managed in light of those broader goals. Equally important is to begin an evaluation of the effectiveness of its approach across a range of areas. For example, what are the right metrics to measure progress with regard to advancement of American technology innovation, reduced overdependence on China, and the imposition of security-based restrictions on Chinese industry?