Trump’s bilateral trade deals are undermining the global trading system

New Atlanticist Mar 31, 2025

Dispatch from Hong Kong: How the ‘geoeconomic city’ is weathering global headwinds

By Josh Lipsky, Ananya Kumar

From Chinese and US economic growth to stablecoin regulations, a recent visit to Hong Kong offered important insights for two Atlantic Council GeoEconomics Center experts.
China Digital Currencies
Trump’s bilateral trade deals are undermining the global trading system

New Atlanticist Mar 25, 2025

Reading between the lines of Taiwan’s new Quadrennial Defense Review

By Kitsch Liao

The recently released Quadrennial Defense Review offers a window into the Taiwanese military’s issues with prioritization, operational readiness, and manpower retention.
China East Asia
Trump’s bilateral trade deals are undermining the global trading system

Report Mar 24, 2025

How Beijing uses inducements as a tool of economic statecraft

By William Piekos

As strategic competition between the United States and China intensifies, Washington and Beijing seek every possible advantage to gain an edge. In this environment, both countries are increasingly turning to economic statecraft—the use of economic coercion or inducement to pursue strategic goals—to advance their interests.
China Economy & Business

Programs

The Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security’s Indo-Pacific Security Initiative equips the transatlantic community to “pivot” to the Asia-Pacific and to position the Atlantic Council to serve as the essential link between high-level transatlantic and Asian leaders and thinkers

EXPLORE THE Initiative

Content

New Atlanticist

Jan 13, 2020

Trump’s bilateral trade deals are undermining the global trading system

By Hung Tran

Overall, the three early 2020 agreements have started to transform the multilateral rule-based system into a largely bilaterally managed, outcome-based system. RTAs and their new practices accelerate the fragmentation of the world trading system into numerous trading zones with different overlapping memberships and trade coverage, tariffs, quotas, and quantitative trade targets, plus other rules such as local content and country of origin requirements as well as dispute settlement processes.

China European Union

New Atlanticist

Jan 13, 2020

China’s support for the Maduro regime: Enduring or fleeting?

By Cristina Guevara

As Venezuela’s biggest creditor, China is carrying the burden of Venezuela’s economic collapse. The PRC has become increasingly aware of this unsustainable situation, and, behind closed doors, has been in communications with the interim government. Back in February, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said that China is open to working with a different government to ensure payment for the loans-for-oil deals. Strictly speaking, China’s relationship with the South American country is transactional, not ideological.

China International Markets

Issue Brief

Jan 9, 2020

Democracy under siege: Advancing cooperation and common values in the Indo-Pacific

By Dr. Kharis Templeman

“Democracy under Siege: Advancing Cooperation and Common Values in the Indo-Pacific” examines challenges and opportunities for advancing cooperation and common values in the Indo-Pacific as the region faces an increasing challenge from China.

Australia China

In the News

Jan 9, 2020

Linscott in The Print: In 2020, India & US must collaborate in WTO and beyond to counter China’s trade practices

By Atlantic Council

China India

MENASource

Jan 6, 2020

China’s response to the Soleimani killing

By Jonathan Fulton

Anything that affects the Gulf states’ ability to get energy to market hurts China’s economy, which in turn erodes the performance legitimacy model of the Chinese Communist Party.

China Iraq

In the News

Jan 3, 2020

Manning joins Arirang TV to discuss prospects for North Korea-US talks in 2020

By Atlantic Council

East Asia Korea

New Atlanticist

Dec 23, 2019

The Korea conundrum

By Robert A. Manning, Patrick O’Reilly

Imminent missile, and possibly nuclear, tests will heighten tensions and war fears on the Korean Peninsula. To keep Pyongyang’s capabilities in perspective, this graphic, updated as developments warrant, shows that North Korea still has additional work to do before it has a reliable, operational ICBM that can reach the United States.

Korea Nuclear Nonproliferation

Report

Dec 20, 2019

Leading the free world: How America benefits

By Paul D. Miller

Americans have been the unconscious beneficiaries of a world order that would not exist without them. Just as we take for granted electricity and plumbing, so to we take for granted the peace and prosperity of our system.

China Nationalism

New Atlanticist

Dec 20, 2019

Could the United States and India find a path to collaborate on China trade?

By Mark Linscott

So why shouldn’t the Trump administration consider expanding its bilateral trade cooperation with India to initiate joint efforts on China, which could parallel existing efforts with the EU and Japan and possibly merge with them over time? Might this approach even lead to a new plurilateral negotiation in the World Trade Organization (WTO) that positions it as the most likely venue for tackling Chinese practices over the longer term?

China India

New Atlanticist

Dec 20, 2019

Top ten risks of 2020

By Robert A. Manning, Mathew Burrows

2020 will likely bear more resemblance to the 1930s, as some of the developments which did not reach a denouement in the past year cross the finish line. Several simmering conflicts, symptoms of a global system under strain from US President Donald J. Trump’s “anti-globalist” America First doctrine, could well reach breakpoints in 2020. This may include a shift from the mere corroding of multilateral institutions and US alliances toward total dysfunction.

China International Norms
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Experts

Staff

Caroline Costello

Program Assistant

Global China Hub

China Chinese

Fellow

Dakota Cary

Nonresident Fellow

Global China Hub

China Cybersecurity

Advisory Council member

Jean DeSombre

Member, Freedom and Prosperity Center Advisory Council

Freedom and Prosperity Center

East Asia Inclusive Growth

Advisory Council member

Michael George DeSombre

Member, Freedom and Prosperity Center Advisory Council

Freedom and Prosperity Center

East Asia Politics & Diplomacy

Fellow

Winnona DeSombre Bernsen

Nonresident Fellow

Cyber Statecraft Initiative

China Chinese

Staff

Philippe Dickinson

Deputy Director

Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security Transatlantic Security Initiative

Chinese East Asia
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