Beijing rejects Trump’s baiting tactics

MANILA, 26 SEPTEMBER 2026 —

President Donald J. Trump has shown notable deference in his public comments to Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s priorities and concerns. Trump has been publicly praiseworthy of his Chinese counterpart and respectful of China’s rise under Xi. Rather than reciprocating with gestures to address Trump’s appetite for respect on the world stage, though, Xi has taken a more guarded approach to managing U.S.-China relations.

As a result, Chinese leaders appear to be calculating the lowest cost they must pay to sustain an uneasy calm in the relationship. Beijing is focused on strengthening its long-term position for competing with the United States, not on securing breakthroughs with Trump. Since the founding of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in 1949, China’s leaders have chafed at their perception of America’s ideological zeal.

To varying degrees, American leaders since World War II have encouraged China to become more open, free, and democratic. Multiple American leaders have lent support to democratic movements to overthrow communist regimes around the world, both during the Cold War and since. China’s leaders from Mao Zedong onward have expressed frustration at American attempts to change China.

In response, Chinese leaders consistently have vowed that one day China would surpass the United States and prove the superiority of its governance model. Seen in this light, President Donald Trump and his administration embody many of the traits, instincts, and characteristics that Beijing has long sought in an American counterpart. Gone is any semblance of high-handedness in suggesting what reforms China should undertake.

The Trump administration does not champion human rights, religious freedom, or liberal democratic governance, nor does it pressure China to reform its governance or economic models. It does not demand that China conform to Western civilizational traditions and ideals. Rather, it approaches China as a different civilization with its own customs and practices. Trump has provided persistent public displays of respect for Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

He has bestowed similar respect upon China as a peer of the United States, including by invoking the concept of the United States and China serving as a “G2” to offer joint leadership on the world stage. America presently is not organizing to seek to impair China’s future development. To the contrary, Trump has watered down policies that were designed to impede China’s technological advances. He also has given a green light for U.S.

companies to sell more advanced semiconductor chips to China, provided the United States government gets a cut of revenue from such sales. Trump has no interest in organizing America’s allies to contain or constrain China’s expansion of influence in Asia or globally. In fact, Trump’s instinctual skepticism of the value of alliances dovetails with China’s preference for the attenuation and eventual dissolution of America’s alliance network. The U.S.

military’s shift in resources away from China’s periphery during the second Trump administration has relieved pressure on Beijing. By transferring carrier strike groups and missile defense systems from East Asia to the Middle East, Trump has removed a persistent thorn in China’s side. Leaders at the Department of Defense similarly have relaxed pressure on China. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth did not mention Taiwan in his 2026 speech at the Shangri-La Dialogue.

Undersecretary of Defense Elbridge Colby did not raise China during a speech on regional strategy in Manila in August. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Alvaro Smith lauded warming U.S.-PRC military ties at a speech at the 99th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). These messages fit a pattern of prioritizing efforts to tamp down tensions with China.

Trump has led the way in this regard by embracing Beijing’s preferred framing on Taiwan.

Instead of reciting America’s long-standing commitment to its “One China” policy based on the Taiwan Relations Act, the three U.S.-China joint communiques, and the Six Assurances, Trump has taken to blaming Taiwan for tensions in the Taiwan Strait, including by suggesting that Taiwan needs to “cool down a bit.” He has raised doubts about whether it makes sense for American forces to “travel 9,500 miles to fight a war” over Taiwan.

He also has indicated he would consult with Xi on future arms sales to Taiwan. Members of his administration counter that Trump’s comments do not reflect any change in America’s approach to cross-Strait issues. They stress that Trump has approved more arms sales to Taiwan than any president, and they maintain that U.S.-Taiwan ties remain.

Even so, the net effect has been to signal that Trump wants to prevent Taiwan from becoming an obstacle to his broader goals with Xi. Trump’s stated goals with Xi are largely transactional. His consistent refrain to American voters is that he has a uniquely strong relationship with Xi and that he can use that relationship to avoid war and instead deliver economic benefits.

Trump also has vowed to narrow America’s trade deficit with China, which he has framed as an issue of fairness. Alongside these conciliatory statements, the Trump administration has taken competitive actions, such as new restrictions on Chinese drones and robotics imports and pressure on third countries not to transship Chinese products. The Trump administration has issued sanctions and tariff threats against PRC entities, including Chinese companies doing business with Iran. The U.S.

military is investing in new capabilities for use in a high-end contingency with China. Through its Pax Silica initiative, Washington is working with partners to reduce dependence on China’s chokehold over key inputs for high-technology supply chains, such as rare earths and magnets. The Trump administration is working to lock other countries into America’s artificial intelligence (AI) tech stack.