US Trade Representative Nominee “Alliance and Cooperation Against China’s Aggressive Trade Policy”

Catherine Thai, the president of the US Trade Representative (USTR), announced on the 25th (local time) that he would cooperate with the alliance against China’s aggressive trade policy by calling China as a competitor.

According to foreign media, the nominee Tai said at the Senate Financial Committee’s confirmation hearing on the same day, “China is a rival, trading partner, and a very large player to cooperate to solve certain global challenges.”

Regarding the first phase of the US-China trade agreement, he called for faithful implementation, saying, “There are promises that China must fulfill,” and said that the United States needs to explore all options in order to promote the structural changes required by China.

He also said that strategic and coherent planning is necessary to ensure that China keeps its promises and competes with China’s state-led economic model.

In relation to the international trade order and the role of the United States, the Thai nominee said, “We must communicate the values ​​and rules that drive global trade and enforce these conditions strongly.”

He said the United States is a founding member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and that it needs to talk in a constructive way to strengthen it.

The former Donald Trump administration has distrusted the WTO system, but President Biden has emphasized US leadership in this process, supporting market expansion through international trade systems such as the WTO and multilateral agreements.

The Thai nominee said he would prioritize re-establishing international alliances and partnerships, and rejoining international organizations to show the alliance’s united front against China.

It also said that the United States would try to rebuild tense relations with the alliance.

The Thai nominee stated that tariffs are a legitimate tool for trade policy and a “very important part” for fair trade, supporting the use of tariffs, Reuters reported.

He avoided answering two sensitive questions, such as whether the Trump administration would abolish tariffs imposed on imported steel and aluminum, and whether the Barack Obama administration would revive the Pacific Rim Economic Partnership (TPP), the Associated Press reported.

He said that he will strive for trade cooperation with Asian countries regarding TPP, but that the world looks very different from 2015 when the TPP negotiations were held.

Former President Trump withdrew from the U.S.-led TPP in 2017, and since then, 11 countries in the Asia-Pacific have promoted a new economic alliance through the Comprehensive and Progressive Pacific Rim Economic Partnership Agreement (CPTPP).

Meanwhile, in the technological competition with China, the United States needs alliances with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, India, and other countries, and when asked what they think of this issue, the Thai designator will solve this problem if approved. He replied that he would be more involved and discussed.

The Thai nominee is the daughter of a Taiwanese immigrant and is considered a Chinese expert and a hard-worker in China.

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