Gordon Chang on China's 'Hysterical' Reaction to US-Taiwan Defense Deals

Taiwan's Defense Push and US Support

• 🇺🇸 President Trump's executive order to review contracts and guidelines for engagement with Taiwan is seen as a positive move to strengthen ties.
• 💰 Taiwan is boosting its defense spending by $40 billion to counter China's military might and plans to purchase US weapons and defense technology.
• ⚠️ A key challenge for Taiwan's defense spending is the opposition KMT party, which controls the legislature and can block or water down proposed defense budgets.

China-Russia Alliance and Ukraine War

• 🤝 China's foreign minister met with his Russian counterpart to reaffirm their global partnership, occurring shortly after US-Russian negotiations on Ukraine yielded no agreement.
• 🚫 It's suggested that China, through its foreign minister Wang Yi, influenced Russia not to end the war in Ukraine, as China reportedly does not want the conflict to cease.

US-Japan Partnership Against China

• 🌏 Japan is a crucial ally for the US in pushing back against China, possessing a capable military.
• 😠 China has initiated a conflict with Japan, but Japan has not backed down, leading to a "hysterical" reaction from Beijing.
• 🗣️ Wang Yi's visit to Moscow may have been to enlist Russia in China's rhetorical fight against Japan.

UK's Mega Embassy Decision and China's Global Deals

• 🇬🇧 Beijing is also criticizing the United Kingdom for delaying a decision on China building a mega embassy in London, citing national security concerns.
• 🏗️ The proposed embassy site is over sensitive cables near the Royal Mint, which China reportedly wants to control.
• 🇺🇸 China is increasing purchases of American agricultural products, including soybeans, partly due to irregularities found in Brazilian soybean purchases.

China's Commitments and US Tariffs

• 📉 Despite increased soybean purchases, China is not meeting its commitment of 12 million metric tons by the end of the year, with a potential extension to February next year.
• 🚫 A promised rare earth deal by Thanksgiving has also not materialized, suggesting China is delaying and playing games with the Trump administration.
• 📈 Gordon Chang advocates for President Trump to impose higher tariffs on China to address these delays and unfulfilled commitments.

Chinese Companies on US Exchanges

• 🏦 The SEC Chairman discussed making it easier for companies to go public, but concerns remain about disclosures from Chinese companies traded on US exchanges.
• ⚠️ Companies on US exchanges that are also on Pentagon entity lists, posing a national security threat, should not be traded on American exchanges.
• 💰 Allowing these companies to trade on US exchanges means the US is financing companies that are considered a threat to national security, a situation described as "underwriting the enemy."
• ⚔️ These Chinese companies actively cooperate with the Chinese military under the doctrine of military-civil fusion, effectively helping to arm the Chinese military against the US.