US President Donald Trump’s approach to China reveals a leader improvising rather than implementing a coherent strategy. It reflects a form of transactional statecraft – prioritising short-term economic wins over long-term strategic alignment.
As a result, Mr Trump’s second-term China policy has become a Rorschach test for foreign policy analysts. Depending on your vantage point, you might see a master dealmaker softening his approach to secure a grand bargain, a hardball negotiator maintaining maximum pressure, or a leader simply buying time while two global powers dance towards an inevitable confrontation.