![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
fridi posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
talkpoliticsNow that Trump has been on the right track to surrendering a century's worth of US global power in a matter of weeks, there are other sharks that are sure to step in.
Case in point: When the US cut various USAID programs, they left a lot of local organizations in place that lack funding and technical expertise. China is starting to provide the missing funding and replace the departing Americans in key positions. This plus the belt and road program and other initiatives listed below gives China multiple opportunities.
During the Cold War the US surrounded the USSR with alliances around the globe. I think that China is now doing this against the US with Trump's help. China is getting a lock on global raw materials, through soft power, as opposed to Trump's clumsy "give us yours or else" approach.
U.S. Soft Power Is Spiraling in Asia, With China Filling the Void
China builds space alliances in Africa as Trump cuts foreign aid
It may take a few years. After the tariff threats from Trump towards Columbia, I bet Columbia is working rapidly to expand its coffee trade with China too:
Colombia Coffee Exports Rise in 2024, Driven by China Sales
The examples are all across the board. Trouble for the US is, as nice as "America first" may sound as a slogan, this whole thing is going to bite America in the ass big time in the long run. Global influence in every sense of the phrase is never inexpensive to obtain and maintain, but it is going to be hugely expensive to get it back once nations and trade lines up behind China and others who look at the US as a nation in decline/retreat.
The downside of all this? Folks who believe that America providing policing and security duties for the world was bad are in for a shock once China picks up that mantle.
Case in point: When the US cut various USAID programs, they left a lot of local organizations in place that lack funding and technical expertise. China is starting to provide the missing funding and replace the departing Americans in key positions. This plus the belt and road program and other initiatives listed below gives China multiple opportunities.
During the Cold War the US surrounded the USSR with alliances around the globe. I think that China is now doing this against the US with Trump's help. China is getting a lock on global raw materials, through soft power, as opposed to Trump's clumsy "give us yours or else" approach.
U.S. Soft Power Is Spiraling in Asia, With China Filling the Void
China builds space alliances in Africa as Trump cuts foreign aid
It may take a few years. After the tariff threats from Trump towards Columbia, I bet Columbia is working rapidly to expand its coffee trade with China too:
Colombia Coffee Exports Rise in 2024, Driven by China Sales
The examples are all across the board. Trouble for the US is, as nice as "America first" may sound as a slogan, this whole thing is going to bite America in the ass big time in the long run. Global influence in every sense of the phrase is never inexpensive to obtain and maintain, but it is going to be hugely expensive to get it back once nations and trade lines up behind China and others who look at the US as a nation in decline/retreat.
The downside of all this? Folks who believe that America providing policing and security duties for the world was bad are in for a shock once China picks up that mantle.
