Trump attacks China’s economic, military policies

US President-elect Donald Trump has stepped up his rhetoric against China, criticizing Beijing’s economic policies as well as it military presence in the South China Sea.

In a Twitter outburst on early Monday, Trump accused China of devaluing its currency and building a “massive” military complex.

“Did China ask us if it was OK to devalue their currency (making it hard for our companies to compete), heavily tax our products going into their country (the US doesn’t tax them) or to build a massive military complex in the middle of the South China Sea? I do not think so!” he ranted in multiple tweets.

The attacks were nothing new as Washington has already accused China of such measures over the past years.

Devaluation of yuan, for example, has always been viewed in Washington as an unfair move that favors Chinese exporters at the expense of their foreign competitors.

The US has also accused China of conducting a land reclamation program in the South China Sea and “militarizing” reefs and islands that are claimed by several other countries neighboring the disputed waters.

Washington has pushed the envelope even further, challenging China’s sovereignty claims over most of the South China Sea by sending warships to the sea, which serves as a gateway for trillions of dollars in annual maritime trade.

What makes Trump’s recent jab significant, however, is that it came shortly after he risked China’s wrath by talking to Taiwan’s leader, marking a clear breakaway from Washington’s years-long political correctness in addressing the Beijing-Taipei conflict.

SS