Since his first sojourn in the White House, a hallmark of the Donald Trump presidency has been a harder, more nakedly competitive policy toward China.
There are intense debates about how the U.S. can prevail in that struggle but there are no signs that a single strategy guides the administration. Nor will there be one.
While there is agreement that China is a strategic competitor, U.S. President Trump appears to think quite differently about the meaning of that concept, the significance of the rivalry and what a resolution or ideal end state looks like. A “victory” as he defines it might well appall national security traditionalists, along with U.S. allies and partners.
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