On this episode of China Uncensored,
the bromance continues.
Hi, welcome back.
I’m Chris Chappell.
Donald Trump has completed his much anticipated
first state visit to China.
And President Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping
spent most of the time celebrating the thing closest to their hearts.
Each other.
“A relationship with you and China is a very important one to me.”
“The United States, the feelings we have for China
is a very warm feeling,
and I really believe it’s only going to get warmer.”
Here they are watching home movies of themselves.
Aww, look, it’s their first handshake!
They’re really enjoying this.
And why not?!
It’s Donald Trump,
the most interesting man in the world.
And Xi Jinping, the most…
adjectiveless man in the world.
Meanwhile Melania went for a walk by herself.
On a big wall.
Xi Jinping offered Trump a rare
personal escort through the Forbidden City.
Where they admired relics from ancient China.
I think Xi was trying to say that’s the two of them.
Meanwhile Melania got to see schoolchildren.
And a panda.
And finally, Xi treated Trump to a Peking Opera.
A fun time time was had by all.
So now that it’s all over, what are we left with?
Well, there were two big topics everyone knew
would come up during the meetings
between President Trump and Xi Jinping:
trade and North Korea.
On the trade front,
the Trump administration has in the past
accused China of unfair business practices,
currency manipulation,
and intellectual property theft.
In fact,
blaming China was a true Trump campaign classic.
We can’t allow China to rape our country,
and that’s what they’re doing.”
And who allowed it, anyway?
“I don’t blame China...
I do blame past administrations for allowing this
out-of-control trade deficit to take place and to grow."
In other words, thanks Obama.
But guess who’s got two thumbs
and isn’t gonna take it anymore?
Yes, the dealmaker-in-chief himself.
Trump announced $250 billion dollars worth
of US China deals during his trip.
Details are still a bit sparse,
and some of those deals
had already been in the works
long before the meeting.
And some of them were just memorandums of understanding,
and not contracts.
But still,
250 billion is a lot of dough.
That’s like Trump’s net worth times...
uh, we’ll get back to you on that.
Anyway, let’s take a look at some of the deals.
There was a $37 billion dollar deal with Boeing
to sell 300 planes to China.
And $84 billion dollar deal with China’s
state-owned China Energy Investment Corp
to invest in shale gas and chemical projects in West Virginia.
And a $43 billion dollar deal with state-run Sinopec
to develop Alaska’s liquid natural gas industry
that could create up to 12,000 American jobs.
Ok, so the Boeing deal is fine.
But I would be somewhat wary about
the Alaska and West Virginia deals.
It’s hard to say since we don’t know the details,
but in the past countries who have let China
invest heavily in their natural resources,
have had some problems.
But the really big win was for US companies
looking to invest in China.
China announced a new rule allow foreign companies to own 51% stakes in foreign ventures.
I know, that doesn’t even sound very generous.
But previously,
no US company could own a controlling share
in a US-China joint venture.
Even though a Chinese company could
inside the United States.
So why is China more open to foreign investment now?
Is it because China is implementing meaningful rule of law
and wants to level the playing field?
Haha, no.
It’s because China’s economy is slowing down
and they really need the money.
Like when you swear you weren’t going
to move back in with your parents,
but rent is really high right now, you know?
But still, it’s a win for US companies.
At least for the ones that hope to become
the next Starbucks in China...
and not the next Home Depot.
As for North Korea,
Trump and Xi were in agreement.
"We agreed not to replicate failed approaches of the past,
and there were many.”
In other words: Thanks Obama.
And Hillary.
The Trump administration has been pushing China
to put even tougher sanctions on North Korea,
even going so far as to cut off all trade.
But while Trump tweeted that Xi agreed to
upping the sanctions,
as of this recording,
there’s been no official announcements.
So for trade and North Korea,
the Trump administration made some definite progress.
But one of the fair criticisms of Trump’s China trip was that,
like past presidents,
Trump didn’t publicly talk about China’s human rights issues.
And so far there’s no indication that
he talked about them in private, either.
But there was one interesting thing.
The day before President Trump landed in China,
he declared a new holiday,
the National Day for the Victims of Communism.
It “marks 100 years since
the Bolshevik Revolution took place in Russia,”
which gave us the Soviet Union.
Since then, “communist totalitarian regimes
around the world have killed more than
100 million people
and subjected countless more to exploitation,
violence, and untold devastation.”
The White House said that the holiday was
to “remember those who have died
and all who continue to suffer under communism.”
So in other words,
a real Hallmark Holiday.
Frankly, this is important and long overdue.
And there’s an added level of deliciousness
in the fact that it happened right before Trump
went to two communist countries.
But it still would have been nice to have
the US president be more direct about
America’s commitment to freedom and human rights.
What’s that, Shelley?
Trump personally brought up the cases
of high-profile detainees with Xi Jinping?
That’s great!
Was it Taiwanese activist Lee Ming-che?
Or disappeared human rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng?
What?
The UCLA basketball players?!
Well I guess it’s good to know that they are safely back home.
Finally, after leaving China,
President Trump went to Vietnam for the ASEAN summit.
And he’s set his sights on solving the South China Sea Dispute.
“If I can help in any way,
I’m a very good mediator
and a very good arbitrator.”
And Trump’s offer to mediate could actually be helpful.
But to do that, he’ll have to win the love
of Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte.
But I don’t think that’s going to be too hard.
Let’s just say,
at this dinner party,
Duterte one upped Xi Jinping.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I sang -- uninvited --
a duet with Miss Pilita Corrales
upon the orders of the Commander in Chief of the United States."
Wow, international politics have gotten really strange.
But what about the original bromance between Trump and Xi?
Well, it was always in some ways a bromance of convenience.
Xi Jinping has been using Trump’s visit to boost his own profile.
And while Trump is extremely warm about Xi now,
it is not unknown for him to suddenly change his mind.
And now that they’re going long distance...
well, anything could happen.
What do you think of President Trump’s time in China?
Leave your comments below.
Thanks for watching this episode of China Uncensored.
Once again I’m your host Chris Chappell,
see you next time.
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