In the U.S. election debate on the 27th, Biden and Trump were aligned on one topic.
That is, the United States needs to be tougher on China.
That evening, the first debate of the 2024 U.S. presidential election was held in Atlanta, Georgia. During the debate, both Biden and Trump tried to show themselves "tougher" on China, describing China as "the number one threat to the United States." Trump even said that Biden did not realize: "China is threatening our country".
In this regard, the Chinese Foreign Ministry has long made it clear that the real intention of the United States to hinder China's development has become more and more obvious. A spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that US politicians claim to respect the rules, but in practice they often ignore or even break them. Claiming to support fair competition, but in fact suppressing opponents, this kind of thing should be severely criticized and resolutely opposed by the international community.
During the debate, Trump hyped that Biden did not stop China: "If you continue to allow China to do everything to our country, China will control us." "They are threatening our country. Joe (Biden's name), you can't let this happen. You are destroying our country. ”
During the debate, the two also expressed their views on the trade dispute between the United States and China. Previously, Trump had said he would impose a 10 percent tariff on all Chinese imports and a 60 percent tariff on Chinese exports. He claimed that the U.S. has the largest trade deficit with China, and that Biden never lifted Trump's tariffs (on China) because "the U.S. gets a lot of money on imposing tariffs on China," so Biden can't do so, and that Trump himself is "saving our steel industry." ”
Biden has largely maintained most of the Chinese tariffs that Trump has raised since taking office, and has just announced new tariffs of up to 100% on Chinese electric vehicles. However, since Trump's announcement of the relevant tariffs, American economists believe that the increase in import taxes will raise the cost of living for American families.
Biden also pointed this out during the debate: "10% tariffs, do you know what those numbers are? It costs the average American an extra $2,500 a year because they have to pay (added) tariffs, food, everything is important. ”
Mr. Trump defended that the tariffs he imposed on imports would "force other countries to pay the United States, but would not cause inflation." He almost quibbled to explain that the kind of tax hike he advocated would only hit "countries that have been using us for years, like China." "It's just going to force them to pay us a lot of money, dramatically reduce our deficit and give us more power to do other things."
At the moment, the Biden administration's target for tax hikes on China is already very high, such as the recent tax hike on electric vehicles and medical equipment, but this only involves $1.8 billion in goods, which is a small part of U.S.-China trade. In addition to increasing tariffs, analysts generally believe that Biden is more severe on China in terms of technological restrictions and blockades of key technologies. In addition, Biden has also taken more practical steps than Trump in uniting Western and Indo-Pacific allies to coordinate operations, contain and isolate China.
Some analysts said that no matter who comes out on top in the US presidential election debate, the trend of the US imposing more sanctions on China will not change. Some observers say the two candidates differ only in how specifically they will compete strategically with China.
The debate has undoubtedly highlighted the tensions in U.S.-China relations. Whether it is Trump's high-profile warnings or Biden's tough measures, they show the almost crazy obsession of American political circles with the topic of "opposition to China". As the 2024 election approaches, relations between China and the United States are likely to be further strained, and the two countries will become more competitive in trade, technology, and geopolitics.
Some analysts have pointed out that this debate is not only a contest between the two candidates, but also a bellwether for the future relations between China and the United States. It is not difficult to see that no matter who wins the election, Sino-US relations will face new adjustments and changes. For China, how to respond to US pressure and maintain its economic and technological superiority will be an important topic in the coming years.