The US and Canada have agreed to work together to "improve their competitiveness" with China.

This was stated by American President Joe Biden after a remote meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

According to the American leader, he discussed the Chinese issue with his Canadian counterpart in the context of common approaches to world challenges.

“And finally, right after last Friday's G7 meeting, Prime Minister Trudeau and I had the opportunity to look at our bilateral partnerships to highlight issues of interest that affect our hemisphere and the world, and facilitate their solution.

By this, I mean, among other things, coordinating our approaches to improve our competitiveness with China and counter threats to our interests and values, ”Biden said.

The thesis of the need to confront the PRC is also contained in the roadmap for a renewed partnership between the United States and Canada, published on the White House website and on the official Trudeau website.

“They (the parties -

RT

) also discussed ways to better align our approaches to China, including confronting the challenges it poses to our collective interests and a rules-based international order.

This includes the fight against his coercive and unfair methods in the economy, challenges to national security, human rights violations, which will be conducted in parallel with cooperation with China in those areas that are of interest to us, such as climate change, ”the document says.

Earlier in his speech at the Munich conference on February 19, Biden called on the international community to "prepare together for a long-term strategic rivalry with China."

“We need to fight back the economic abuse and coercion that the Chinese government is using that undermines the foundations of the international economic system.

Everyone - absolutely everyone - must follow the same rules, ”Biden said.

During telephone conversations with Chinese President Xi Jinping on February 10, the American leader expressed his concerns about "Beijing's coercive and unfair practices in the economy," human rights violations in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, politics in Hong Kong and, in his opinion, Beijing's aggressive actions. with regard to Taiwan.

"Restoration of direct vassalage"

According to American political scientist Malek Dudakov, based on the agreements between Biden and Trudeau, it can be concluded that Canada is becoming "one of the closest allies of the United States in countering China."

“The Canadian leadership has probably already decided to exchange the economic benefits from cooperation with partners from the PRC for the opportunity to be in the wake of the US anti-Chinese policy.

And given that Canadian business largely depends on Chinese capital (a lot of investments from China come to Canada), Ottawa will have to face serious hardships and negative consequences as a result of the anti-Chinese policy that the Canadian side intends to pursue together with the United States, "the expert noted. in a conversation with RT.

According to Dudakov, the rapprochement between Washington and Ottawa, including on the Chinese issue, occurred primarily due to the fact that Joe Biden now occupies the presidency of the United States.

  • US President Joe Biden during a virtual meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, 23 February 2021

  • Reuters

  • © Jonathan Ernst

“Justin Trudeau is delighted to see a Democrat in the White House.

Obviously, the Canadian prime minister believes that the new American leader will be more accommodating and less categorical than his predecessor Donald Trump, ”the analyst said.

Political analyst Alexander Asafov, in turn, said that, given the very difficult relationship that was between the Canadian leadership and Trump, now Ottawa is trying to restore the lost ties with the United States at the cost of some concessions.

“Under the 45th US President, relations between Washington and Ottawa were going through hard times.

Now that Biden is in power, Canada needs to restore relations with the American side.

But it is clear that this will not happen without new unpleasant conditions for the Canadian side.

Now the parties are actually updating the protocol of cooperation, which is primarily beneficial for the United States, "the analyst said in an interview with RT.

Trump's legacy

As noted earlier by the American media, citing sources in high-ranking circles of the United States, Biden may partly continue the course of the 45th US President Donald Trump towards China.

“We have reviewed the actions of the Trump administration over the past four years and we believe that the basic thesis about intense strategic rivalry with China and that we need to act decisively and systematically, using all the tools of our government and our power is justified,” the American radio station NPR 10 quotes February, the words of a source from among officials.

It is also reported that Biden intends to keep the tariffs that Trump previously imposed on goods from China for a while.

"We believe that we will need to be very careful, in consultation with our allies and partners, in consultation with Congress, to explore all the sources of economic influence at our disposal and to put forward a bolder, more effective trade strategy towards China, starting from the existing tariffs." , - said the source.

Recall that Donald Trump, while in power, often made anti-Chinese statements and pursued a policy aimed mainly at confrontation with the PRC.

Thus, Trump and his team in the White House unleashed a trade confrontation with China.

In the summer of 2018, the American side set duties of 25% on the import of more than 800 types of products from the Republic of China in the amount of $ 34 billion per year.

In January 2020, the parties agreed on the so-called first phase of the trade deal - Beijing pledged to increase purchases of American goods by $ 200 billion. Washington hoped that this would significantly reduce the trade imbalance between the PRC and the United States.

According to the US trade office, the trade deficit narrowed in 2019, but still reached an impressive $ 345 billion.

However, despite the deal, relations between the two countries continued to escalate amid numerous accusations by the United States against China over the coronavirus pandemic.

Trump has repeatedly stated that the Chinese side is allegedly to blame for the spread of COVID-19 across the planet.

Beijing denied such accusations, emphasizing that the coronavirus is "the common enemy of all mankind, which can show its face at any time and anywhere in the world."

Last summer, months before the 2020 U.S. presidential election, Trump announced that he was no longer interested in a trade deal with China.

He said this to reporters during a press conference.

  • The White house

  • Reuters

  • © Joshua Roberts

Later, speaking in Arizona, he said that on his initiative, trade negotiations with the Chinese side were postponed.

In the same statement, the 45th US President again accused Beijing of spreading COVID-19 around the world.

At the end of August, Trump completely allowed the economies of the United States and China to be "separated" in the event of his re-election for a second term.

"In line with economic confrontation"

As Malek Dudakov noted, Biden now "has to act in the channel that was outlined by Trump in the Chinese issue."

“The new American leader might, deep down, like to improve relations with China, but he understands that at this stage the train has already left.

Accordingly, it is necessary to increase the confrontation with the Chinese republic.

This is what the public and the political elite expects from him, ”the analyst said.

At the same time, Dudakov explained that Biden's anti-Chinese course would not be hampered by the ties of many representatives of the Democratic Party with Chinese business.

“The fact is that now none of the American politicians are pushing their ties with China.

They try to make everyone forget about these contacts.

For this reason, these persons will not put a spoke in the wheels for the new US president, but on the contrary, they will publicly begin to declare the need to fight China, ”the expert said.

Dudakov also believes that in his anti-Chinese rhetoric, in addition to the economic aspect, Biden will also focus on the issue of human rights violations in the Republic of China, which he has repeatedly stated.

“Trump was less interested in this side of the matter.

Biden will tackle it thoroughly.

At the same time, he will continue the course of confrontation with China in the economic sphere, including through the withdrawal of production logistics chains from China.

The tariff war, sanctions pressure, build-up of military forces in the South China Sea and Southeast Asia region will also continue, ”the analyst predicted.

Alexander Asafov also believes that Biden's actions towards China "will not be significantly different from those of Trump."

“The US policy in line with the economic confrontation with China will continue.

Washington needs this to get financial profit and maximum preferences from trade, its regulation through various duties, sanctions and other pressures.

Despite the fact that Biden's rhetoric may be softened, in reality the measures of the American side will only be toughened.

After all, it is always easier to trade by limiting your competitors by methods of unfair competition, such as sanctions and political pressure, ”the expert concluded.