Xi’s strategic evolution takes a page from Trump’s own “maximum pressure” playbook of using the threat of overwhelming economic sanctions to get his way against adversaries and friends alike. According to those familiar with Beijing’s thinking, while China’s reactions to U.S. trade assaults were often proportional in the past, its countermeasures now are designed to be more severe.
“During Trump’s first term, China was constantly put off balance by his pressure tactics,” said Kurt Campbell, former deputy secretary of state under President Joe Biden and now chairman of the Asia Group, an advisory firm in Washington. “This time, Xi wanted to be prepared. He knows Trump wants a good relationship with him and respects strength, not concessions.”
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