WASHINGTON — One went to the United States. The other went to China. It was a sign of the times.<\/p>\n
While the Swiss president was in Washington last week to lobby U.S. officials over President Donald Trump’s<\/a> threatened 31% tariff on Swiss goods, the Swiss foreign minister was in Beijing, expressing his nation’s willingness to strengthen cooperation with China and upgrade a free trade agreement.<\/p>\n As Trump’s trade war<\/a> locks the world\u2019s two largest economies on a collision course, America’s unnerved allies and partners are cozying up with China to hedge their bets. It comes as Trump’s trade push upends a decade of American foreign policy \u2014 including his own from his first term \u2014 toward rallying the rest of the world to join the United States against China. And it threatens to hand Beijing more leverage in any eventual dialogue<\/a> with the U.S. administration.<\/p>\n With Trump saying that countries are \u201ckissing my ass\u201d to negotiate trade deals on his terms or risk stiff import taxes, Beijing is reaching out to countries far and near. It portrays itself as a stabilizing force and a predictable trading partner, both to cushion the impact from Trump’s tariffs and to forge stronger trade ties outside of the U.S. market.<\/p>\n \u201cAmerica and China are now locked in a fierce contest for global supremacy,\u201d Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said in an April 16 speech. \u201cBoth powers claim they do not wish to force countries to choose sides. But in reality, each seeks to draw others closer into their respective orbits.\u201d<\/p>\n Trump has paused some of his steepest tariffs on most American partners for 90 days after global financial markets<\/a> melted down. But he has raised tariffs on Chinese goods to 145%, drawing rebukes from Beijing, which has vowed to “fight to the end.\u201d U.S. companies are warning of higher prices, meaning Trump could face both higher inflation and empty store shelves.<\/p>\n The magnitude of the taxes are already dramatically affecting American imports, with the shipping containers set to arrive at the Port of Los Angeles down nearly 36% over the past two weeks, according to Port Optimizer, which tracks vessels. It’s lending urgency for both the U.S. and China to bolster support from alternate partners. <\/p>\n While Trump administration officials suggest the president could ease the duty rates on Chinese goods at his discretion, there has been no indication he’s yet looking for a reduction. That, after all, could suggest his protectionist policies were hurting the American economy.<\/p>\n \u201cThey want to make a deal obviously,” Trump told reporters Sunday, saying the U.S. had gone \u201ccold turkey\u201d on trade from China. \u201cRight now, they\u2019re not doing business with us.\u201d<\/p>\n The White House has framed any negotiations as being between the U.S. president and Chinese President Xi Jinping<\/a>, but neither leader seems willing to make the initial outreach without some kind of concession. The two countries can’t even agree publicly whether they are holding talks. <\/p>\n