No War But Trade War!
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I have a couple pieces at the Diplomat dealing with the coming(?) trade war with China. From last week:
Geopolitics may also have gotten in the way of a confrontation. Seth Weinberger suggests that the timing of the UN sanctions may be connected to the proposed investigation; it is possible that the Trump administration backed off of criticizing China in order to get tougher sanctions against North Korea. Although the investigation into China’s IP and trade practices is expected to move forward, a major public unveiling was delayed. Stephen Haggard also suggests that Chinese concern over sanctions may have played a role in the timing of the North Korea resolution.
And this week, regarding the central points of contention:
Last week, U.S. President Donald J. Trump ordered a Section 301 investigation into China’s intellectual property (IP) practices. The report could take a year or more, and would not result in automatic action against China; rather, it would provide the president with a set of weapons to use if China is found in fault.