The Oval Perspective: China’s Containment

I always heard that the United States should not meddle in other countries’ affairs but I never believed it to be wise counsel. As I began learning about all the horrific issues and injustices around the world, the more I became convinced that we need America’s intervention to keep the peace. The U.S. is the world’s greatest hope. You only need to pick up a newspaper to find out the atrocities and injustices that occur daily around the world, such as the Rohingya ethnic cleansing in Myanmar. Concentration camps with estimates of more than 1,000,000 of Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, Hui (Muslims re-education camps) in Xinjiang, by the People’s Republic of China and these are just a few examples.

President Trump announced increased tariffs on China last year with the purpose to curb their behavior. You see, China has mistreated western companies by stealing technology, by preventing American companies to compete freely in China while protecting Chinese national companies, and through state subsidizing practices as cheap loans to Chinese state-owned corporations and currency manipulation. Not only do the Chinese not care about respecting trademark and copyrights, but they also want to increase military influence and impact to advance their agenda via mercantilism and imperialism. They lack respect and love for their neighbors, period!  Therefore, the question is, why did it take this long to counter China? It is beyond my understanding.

After more than a year since the U.S. increased tariffs on Chinese exports, China’s economy has slowed down and shrunk to an estimated 6% of GDP. A significant number considering the size of the country. I’ve also noticed increased pressure from other countries as they start to question China’s consistent lack of business ethics. The European Union is growing weary of the influence China has on Eastern European nations. Australia has toughened policies towards Beijing. China is also dealing with the worst protest since the UK gave back the territory of Hong Kong. POTUS signed The Hong Kong Hu­man Rights and Democ­racy Act of 2019 this past weekend, showing solidarity with pro-democracy protesters. In addition to all of this, China is now facing the embarrassment of their Muslim “re-education” camps. The controversy surrounding this issue is that these camps are no more than concentration camps designed to oppress the Muslim population in Xinjiang. All of this is happening as the 70th anniversary of the foundation of the People’s Republic of China.

America can keep China in check and empower other nations to stand up for themselves because it has a broader economy and a stronger army. President Trump could continue the pressure on China because he has momentum going for him as the U.S. economy continues to perform very well with the current unemployment rate at 3.6% and a 50-year low, as wages keep rising. POTUS should cut a deal with China because at the end of the day China will not curve their predatory behavior, and 2020 elections are just around the corner.