Since being inaugurated for the second term of his leadership on January 20, 2025, Donald Trump has made statements to make policies that reap many pros and cons and have a significant influence on international dynamics. One of his policies that is currently being discussed in the international arena is his trade war with China. But this trade war is not an innovation made by Trump to start his second term, but it is a dynamic of relations between the two countries with a large influence in the economy, which has a relationship full of tension from both sides.
The beginning of 2018 was marked as the time when the trade war between these two major countries occurred, where the United States began to raise its import tariffs for several countries that are its trading partners, and one of them is China. If you pull back, the background of the phenomenon that occurred in 2017 when the United States experienced a trade deficit. According to data reported through CEIC, at that time exports made by China reached USD 236 trillion, while the United States at the time only reached USD 1550 billion. In addition, if you look at the export statistics of the two countries since the last ten years, China’s exports have increased very significantly. In April 2015, China’s exports were still at 175.9 USD billion, while in the same period, the United States was still leading with exports at 193,086 USD billion, but according to Trading Economics data in February 2025, the United States’ exports were at 278,458 USD billion, while China’s exports in the same period almost doubled what the Americans had, which was 539.94 USD billion. China’s very high increase in exports, even in the last ten years, has certainly made the American government experience fears that China’s nightmare as a candidate for a superpower country could rival and even displace its country.
Since Donald Trump’s campaign for the first presidential election has targeted reforming trade relations with China, Trump has tried to come up with several strategies to balance the value of his country’s trade, some of which are declaring China a currency manipulator, raising issues of intellectual property and technology transfer, ending export subsidies, and ending weak labor and environmental standards in China. The deficit in 2017 is believed by Trump and the United States to be unfair trade practices carried out by China.
Some of the above are strong reasons for Donald Trump to sign a memorandum entitled United States International Trade Representative (USITR). USITR is strengthened by two articles in the US Trade Law, namely Stake 201 and Article 301, where Article 201 discusses the US Trade Commission, which can designate an imported good as a threat if it threatens the domestic industry. While Article 301 speaks of the US president being given the authority to take action against foreign trade practices that threaten and harm his country,.
Seeing the threat looming over his country and some legal rules that give him clear authority, the United States, under the leadership of Donald Trump, in March 2018 took action to implement the policy of imposing 15% tariffs on steel products and 10% tariffs on aluminum products produced by China. This was the beginning of the phenomenon of a trade war whose escalation of the conflict then had an impact not only on both countries but also on other countries. The imposition of tariffs imposed by the United States then invited a similar response from China, where China then imposed a 25% tariff on US imports worth $60 billion. The escalation of the trade war then continued when Trump returned to the White House; as of February 4, 2025, he imposed tariffs of 10% on all Chinese imports, including consumer technology, toys, and others. This was then responded to by China by imposing a trade tariff of 10% on crude oil, machinery, and several other goods originating from the United States.
Trump’s trade attacks then continued to the imposition of steel and aluminum tariffs of 25%, the procurement of reciprocal tariffs, and tariffs imposed on some commodities imported by Mexico, Canada, and the European Union. Before the enactment of reciprocal tariffs, there was a 90-day suspension, but China became the country exempted from this suspension, where tariffs on Chinese goods immediately jumped to 125%. In response, China then took steps to impose a 125% tariff on goods from the US. China also took steps to ban 11 US companies from operating in the country and 16 companies that entered into export controls, impose restrictions on rare earth exports, sue the United States at the World Trade Organization (WTO), and investigate the import of American-owned medical equipment. And on April 9, the White House clarified that China imposes a minimum tariff of 145% on all goods they import into the United States.
The dynamics of the relationship between the two countries in the field of trade, of course, reaped a lot of pros and cons. The continuous attacks launched by the United States since 2018 until now have not made China subservient and afraid of the country that until now is often referred to as a superpower. China is playing the game and trying to keep up with the policies issued by the White House by enforcing the same policies. The question that arises is, what is it that makes China so confident against the United States?
If you look back, the development of China, which transitioned from a closed country to a more liberal and modern country in terms of economics, greatly changed the ‘fate’ of this country. Economic liberalization in this country is one of them through cooperation with other countries. One of the cooperation initiatives initiated by China is the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). BRI itself is a program and cooperation that is categorized as a giant project that crosses the continents of Asia, Europe, and Africa, with 3/4 of the energy source targeting a population of 4.4 billion in 67 countries. BRI itself projects two trade routes, namely the Silk Road Economic Belt, which is used to connect land trade routes that will connect countries in South Asia, Central Asia, Central Europe, and East, North, and West. As for the sea route, the Maritime Silk Road was initiated, which will connect Fujian to the Strait of Malacca, the Bay of Bengal, the Arabian Sea, the Suez Canal, and the Mediterranean Sea. In making this initiative a success, China does not hesitate to invest in strategic countries such as Indonesia.
BRI’s initiation gives China a strategic position on the geopolitical stage, especially in the three-continent region that establishes cooperation. BRI is also a bridge for China to meet the energy resources needed by its country without having to pass through or depend on countries or areas of instability that were previously China’s partners in fulfilling resources. In addition, the BRI opens opportunities for China to attract Pakistan as a potential image that can become an ally in opposing the United States’ alliance in the region, such as Japan and India. The presence of BRI is also warmly welcomed by various countries, especially in the Asian region, such as the Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, and even Indonesia.
With the existence of the BRI, China seeks its hegemony both in the field of security by building a political order in the Asian region and in other regions by implementing a strategy of cooperation and sovereignty. China is very firm in protecting its sovereignty in the maritime region, but it is very open to opportunities for cooperation with its neighboring countries. This side is also related to the formation of the AIIB (Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank), which has a voting system where China has as many votes as possible. 27.84%. Through this BRI, China is trying to create a new security order that narrows the influence of the United States in the region, while in the economic field, the AIIB, under the influence of China, is trying to rival the influence of the United States through the World Bank, IMF, or IFI.
Through this elaboration, it is undeniable that China already has a strong foundation in resisting the influence exerted by the United States today. With the foundation of cooperation, hegemony, and strong influence in various countries and regions, China can mobilize countries under its hegemony to side with its country. BRI is one of the tools for China to strengthen its cooperation and influence. Besides that, BRI opens opportunities for China to cut various tariffs or shipping costs for its country’s export and import commodities so as to reduce shipping costs. China is increasingly expanding its cooperation and influence through various efforts that allow the country to remain at a stable level to survive in the midst of the United States’ tariff attacks and even to counter the attacks.
