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Trump's not going easy on China. And that's good news for India

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Rajeev Sharma
Rajeev SharmaFeb 15, 2017 | 09:01

Trump's not going easy on China. And that's good news for India

The joke going around is that US President Donald Trump must be the first politician in the world who is actually implementing the promises made during his campaign.

While he is trying to implement his many poll promises like building a wall along the Mexican border, imposing travel bans on people from seven Muslim-majority nations and tightening protectionist screws on trade and visa policies, there is one area where Trump is going contrary to his poll rhetoric.

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Iconoclast

This pertains to China. If the Chinese thought that Trump will be ceding vital diplomatic and strategic place in vast areas of the world to China by his inward-looking policies, then Beijing needs to look again.

In less than three weeks of his presidency, Trump is proving to be as hands-on a US President as his predecessors when it comes to China. This was amply demonstrated within the first fortnight of his taking over, when Trump despatched his defence secretary James Mattis to South Korea and Japan.

Not only that, in his first telephonic conversation with Japanese PM Shinzo Abe within the first week of assuming office, Trump said he was despatching “Mad Dog” Mattis (a phrase used by Trump himself in reference to his defence secretary who is better known by that unflattering epithet) to Japan. Trump told Abe that Mattis was his trusted lieutenant and could discuss “anything” with him.

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Trump assured “great ally” Japan of “100 per cent” backing.

Well, Trump is an iconoclastic kind of an elected US President and a world leader who is not given to diplomatic niceties. Only Trump can call his defence secretary by the nickname of “mad dog” in a formal conversation with another world leader — the Japanese PM in this case.

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Mattis duly completed the maiden Asian tour to two select nations — South Korea and Japan in that order — of his itinerary by February 10. And in both these countries, Mattis assured the South Koreans and Japanese that the US stood side by side and “100 per cent” with America’s crucial Asian allies. This was a departure from what Trump had been saying during the long election campaign.

Trump the President acted just contrary to what Trump the presidential candidate had been saying. Trump had set the proverbial cat among the pigeons of his allies all over the world, particularly in Asia, by highlighting the financial burdens of the American security umbrella.

He had suggested that the US had been spending huge amounts for extending its security umbrella over its allies and had specifically named Japan and South Korea in this context. He had warned that it would not be business as usual after he takes over.

Assertive

The South Koreans and the Japanese have been paying for the over 65,000 American troops on their soil. Each country has been paying a little less than $2 billion to Washington per annum for the American security umbrella, without which they will be seriously vulnerable to an increasingly aggressive and assertive China. But the American ledger books show the US spent $5.5 billion for these security duties.

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However, significantly, the contentious security bills did not come up for discussion when Mattis visited Seoul and Tokyo last week. This shows that Trump has realised the burdens of international diplomacy and strategic manoeuvres far outweigh the financial burdens. This is a good reason for China to be wary about.

Provocation

On February 12, North Korea launched a ballistic missile when Japanese PM Abe was visiting the US for the first time since the advent of the Trump administration. This was the first provocation from North Korea since Trump took over.

What did Trump do? He agreed for an impromptu joint press conference with Abe. Though the event lasted just three minutes, Trump managed to successfully send a powerful message to China. Trump assured “great ally” Japan of “100 per cent” backing.

The tactical move of North Korea (and also of China) thus backfired as the event of the North Korean missile launcher brought out just the opposite reaction from the US. North Korea may have launched the missile on the prodding of China as a trial balloon to test Trump’s reaction, as during the campaign he had warned all allies, including America’s most important ally Japan, that they will have to pay for getting the American security umbrella.

Pyongyang’s provocative action has brought out a full-throttle response from none other than Trump which must be music to Japanese ears and like molten lead to Chinese ears.

The moral of the story is clear: the Trump administration is not giving a walkover to China in Asia and over the South China Sea. This is good news for India.

(Courtesy of Mail Today.)

Last updated: February 15, 2017 | 17:03
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