Gordon Chang on Trump's Asia Tour and China Diplomacy

Trump's Asia Tour: Real Diplomacy

• 🌏 President Trump's trip to Japan, Malaysia, and South Korea is characterized as real diplomacy, not just optics.
• 🎯 The tour aims to isolate China and reduce U.S. vulnerability to rare earth minerals through agreements with Japan, Thailand, and Malaysia.
• 🤝 The setting for the upcoming meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea is considered critical, with Trump positioning himself for the strongest possible footing.

China's Track Record with Agreements

• 📜 Gordon Chang highlights a history of China dishonoring its promises, citing the Phase One trade pact in January 2020 as an example.
• ⚠️ This pattern of broken promises has occurred even when the U.S. has provided concrete benefits in exchange for Chinese commitments.

Tariffs and Leverage

• 💰 Chang believes the U.S. is giving up too much leverage by taking 100% of tariffs off the table before China honors its promises.
• 📌 Tariffs should remain in place until China fulfills commitments on rare earths, soybeans, and fentanyl.

Fentanyl and Trade Promises

• 💊 China has made promises regarding fentanyl to multiple U.S. administrations (Obama, Trump, Biden) but has not honored them.
• 📈 The U.S. is still in discussions with China about fentanyl, despite China's alleged use of it to kill Americans.

Soybean Purchases and Farmer Impact

• 🌾 China has agreed to resume U.S. soybean purchases, but the speed of this change depends on the framework agreement.
• 🇯🇵 Japanese purchases of soybeans are also noted as a positive development, though China remains the primary purchaser.
• 📉 There is concern that China may start buying soybeans and then stop when U.S. attention wanes, a pattern observed in the past.