What kind of 'big deal' do China and the US need?: Global Times editorial

By Global Times

Published: Apr 24, 2025

https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202504/1332750.shtml

On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump told reporters that a 145 percent tariff on Chinese goods is very high, and that once an agreement is reached with China, US tariffs on Chinese imports will come down substantially. "We're going to live together very happily and ideally work together," he said. Earlier, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the US' goal is not to decouple from China, noting the "trade war with China is unsustainable" and the battle will de-escalate "in the very near future." These remarks drew widespread attention in the international community. On Wednesday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry responded, saying that if a negotiated solution is truly what the US wants, it should stop threatening and blackmailing China and seek dialogue based on equality, respect and mutual benefit.

The turmoil and disruptive impact caused by the tariff war launched by the US is becoming increasingly apparent. Lately, the US market has been gripped by growing fears of recession and inflation. According to the Peterson Institute for International Economics, US economic growth in 2025 is projected to plunge from the previous year's 2.5 percent to just 0.1 percent. To reverse this unfavorable outlook, the US will need to alter its flawed trade and tariff policies. According to reports, lobbying groups from the agriculture, construction, manufacturing, retail, and technology sectors have been urging the White House to further ease tariff measures. A recent CNBC survey found that the majorities believe tariffs are "bad for American workers, inflation and the overall economy." The US side's relevant statements quickly triggered a market reaction. US stocks rebounded sharply from previous steep losses, and the three major indexes each posted their best day in two weeks on Tuesday. Euro Stoxx 50 rose by 3.24 percent, and Asian markets also saw gains. 

All signs point to a clear message: the international community wants to see cooperation - not confrontation - between China and the US. This once again underscores that economic globalization is an irreversible historical trend, and that upholding international trade rules and fairness is a shared aspiration. The fundamental nature of China-US economic and trade relations is mutual benefit and win-win cooperation - something that has once again been affirmed.

China has said from day one that tariff and trade wars have no winners, protectionism leads nowhere, and to "decouple" is to self-alienate. The US' mistake is not just that the "145 percent tariff is too high," but more importantly, that under the guise of "trade rebalancing," it imposes trade restrictions and exerts pressure in negotiations, using tariffs as a tool for threats and coercion. The "reciprocal tariffs" have not worked out as Washington had hoped. History has repeatedly shown that trade protectionism does not improve a country's economy; instead, it severely undermines the global trade and investment system, and may even trigger a global economic crisis, only harming both others and itself. 

China and the US are the world's top two economies. Economic and trade cooperation between the two countries is so huge, substantive, and broad-based, involving so many players, that it is only natural for some differences and frictions to exist. The key lies in respecting each other's core interests and major concerns, and resolving disagreements properly through equal and sincere dialogue.

If the US truly wishes to address its concerns through negotiations, it should adopt a correct attitude and demonstrate genuine sincerity. Saying one thing about wanting to reach an agreement with China, on the other hand simultaneously applying maximum pressure is not the right way to engage with China, and it simply won't work.

Both China and the US are major powers, and major powers should act like it. The US has repeatedly mentioned a "big deal" to be done with China. Indeed, if there is to be a true "big deal" between China and the US, it should be one based on mutual respect, peaceful coexistence, and win-win cooperation. That is the right path for China-US relations in the new era.

What the two sides should be discussing is how to strengthen dialogue in a mutually respectful way, manage differences prudently, advance cooperation in the spirit of mutual benefit, and step up coordination on international affairs in a responsible way. This is the kind of "big deal" the world truly hopes to see, and it is the direction in which China and the US should be working together. The entire international community, including both countries, will benefit from it.

The US was once an advocate of the current multilateral economic and trade rules, while China has been an active participant. These widely accepted multilateral rules have significantly lowered the cost of international economic and trade cooperation, improved efficiency, and ensured a basic level of fairness and justice. China-US economic and trade relations are not only of great significance to both countries but also have an important impact on global economic stability and development.

As a Chinese saying goes, "We do not only listen to what one says but also watch what one does." The US side is expected to join forces with the Chinese side to pull in the same direction, so that the two countries can address their respective concerns through equal-footed dialogue and consultation, and jointly promote the healthy, stable and sustainable development of bilateral economic and trade relations.

TRUMP AND THE UNITED STATES, SLAVES TO ISRAEL

Never in the 77-year history of the State of Israel has it been more evident that a US president has reached the levels of subordination and servility that Donald Trump has demonstrated toward the Israeli government.

Not even the man considered the most pro-Israel of presidents, Lyndon B. Johnson, who allowed the indiscriminate attack by the Israeli air force and navy against the USS Liberty communications ship during the Six-Day War in 1967, killing 34 sailors and wounding 171 others, as well as halting aid that other US Navy ships could have provided, has proven to be a true "Manchurian president" (a president controlled by a foreign power) like Donald Trump.

Since his first presidential term (2017-2021), Trump has complied with everything the Netanyahu administration demanded, such as moving the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem; recognizing Israeli "sovereignty" over the Syrian Golan Heights; killing Iranian General Soleimani in a treacherous attack during a visit to Iraq; and undertaking a strategy of blockade and extreme sanctions against Iran, among other pro-Israel policies.

But now, the pro-Israel lobby, led by casino owner Sheldon Adelson's widow, Miriam, who gave $100 million to political action committees that supported Trump in the 2024 presidential campaign, has demanded much more, and has achieved it, such as:

-      Intensifying the repression against all students, academics, and universities that held or allowed protests pointing to Israel's genocide against the Palestinians of Gaza, hypocritically labeling these legitimate demonstrations as "anti-Semitism."

-      Punishing the members of the International Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice for their condemnation of Israel, establishing that it is committing acts of genocide against the Palestinian people.

-      Sanctioning South Africa, under the pretext of discrimination against "whites," but for having filed the complaint against Israel for genocide at the UN International Court of Justice.

-      Launch a national and international crackdown on personalities and media outlets that criticize Israel for its atrocities in Gaza and the West Bank, for which Trump has appointed a special ambassador who will tour the United States and the world to publicize the "Global Guidelines for Countering Antisemitism."

-      Unrestricted sale of all the weapons Israel needs to continue its genocide and ethnic cleansing in Gaza and the West Bank.

-      Trump has stated that Palestinians in Gaza should be relocated to other countries so that the United States can "own" the Gaza Strip and turn it into an international hub for luxury homes, hotels, casinos, golf courses, etc.

-      For the moment, Trump has opened a period of "negotiations" with Iran to completely renounce its nuclear program, the development of its missile program, and the aid it provides to Hamas, Hezbollah, the militias in Iraq, and the Houthis in Yemen, in exchange for not being bombed. But the reality is that he is developing, together with Israel, a plan to attack Iran and destroy its entire nuclear and defense infrastructure, thus starting a new and catastrophic war in the Middle East, to benefit Israel.

-      He has given Israel "carte blanche" to bomb and occupy southern Lebanon and seize as much Syrian territory as possible, while also destroying what remains of the Syrian army after the fall of Bashar al-Assad at the end of 2024.

In short, Trump is Israel's slave, charged with carrying out international Zionism's plan for global domination, utilizing all the military, economic, political, and communications resources at the superpower's disposal.

As part of this plan, it was necessary to remove Russia from the equation in the Middle East.  If a war against Iran is being prepared, it is essential to prevent Russia from committing to aiding Iran (just as the Iranians have aided the Russians with thousands of drones in their military intervention in Ukraine).

And to achieve this, it was necessary to make concessions to Putin on the Ukraine issue, so that he would not object or intervene in Israeli expansionism in Lebanon and Syria; in the continuation of genocide and ethnic cleansing in Gaza and the West Bank; and, above all, in the upcoming war against Iran.

Hence, the Zionists in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Washington, and New York decided to finally sacrifice Ukraine, and even its Zionist president, Zelensky, to ensure that Russia would not help any of the actors being attacked by Israel in the Middle East. The strategy is working for them.

International Zionism now feels it has all the chips in hand to make a final assault in the Middle East and definitively establish Israeli hegemony in that region, given that they have amply demonstrated in the West that they are the masters.

Bringing the War on Terror to Our Southern Border Can Only End in Disaster

04/16/2025•Mises Wire•Connor O'Keeffe

https://mises.org/mises-wire/bringing-war-terror-our-southern-border-can-only-end-disaster

According to a report last week from NBC News, the Trump administration is considering launching drone strikes against cartel leaders and infrastructure in Mexico.

If the report is accurate, it shines more light on the rumored discussions within Trump’s team about engaging the cartels militarily in an effort to stop, or at least hamper, the flow of fentanyl across the southern border.

What made this latest revelation notable was that, reportedly, the Trump administration is willing to conduct these operations even if the Mexican government opposes them.

The US has already been shifting more military, intelligence, and law enforcement assets toward combating the cartels. Earlier this year, Trump officially designated six cartels as terrorist organizations. And reports suggest that the CIA has stepped up drone flights over Mexican territory to identify fentanyl labs along with the whereabouts and routines of cartel operatives. So, in many ways, it feels like it’s only a matter of time before direct operations begin.

It’s remarkable that this has to be said at all, but starting a war using the same approach as the disastrous War on Terror directly on our southern border is a terrible idea.

For starters, it almost certainly will not stay contained to a couple outposts and labs in northern Mexico. The fantasy that some seem to have that the US can launch strikes with unmanned aircraft, sit back, and watch the cartels collapse—bringing the bulk of the American drug trade down with them—is just that, a fantasy.

In reality, the cartels would most likely not sit there and take it without responding. That could take a lot of forms. They may launch drones of their own over the border, targeting American infrastructure. Or they could purposefully move women and children into targeted areas or even bomb them themselves to turn public opinion against the strikes. It’s naïve to think these groups are above doing something like that.

Or they could go to war with the US. Our military would, of course, crush them in a conventional war, but these cartels don’t fight conventional wars. Cartel wars are nasty irregular conflicts where the preferred strategy in recent decades has been to target low-level operatives—which have meant rival cartel soldiers or police officers—and their families. These groups also use torture extensively against those targets, not primarily to gain information but to terrorize and demoralize the other side.

As brutal as these cartels have been to each other and to Mexican police, they have so far generally avoided targeting US law enforcement. That could easily change if US forces begin targeting the cartels directly.

And American soldiers and cops and their families would not be untouchable because they’re on this side of the border. As irregular warfare scholar Bill Buppert explained in a recent interview, the cartels have extensive networks and operations within the United States. It’s not as if drugs are dropped off a few miles past the border and then magically find their way to users in towns and cities across the nation. The cartel footprint is already here.

Any kind of serious retaliation against American operatives or their families would almost certainly escalate the conflict and bring about a full-on war right on our border.

The Terror Wars the US launched across the Middle East—which also began with the use of “surgical” strikes—not only spiraled out of control and brought an unfathomable scale of death and destruction to that region, they created one of the largest refugee waves in modern history. Tens of millions of people fled north into Europe, where many remain today.

Trump just won the election thanks in large part to the popularity of his promise to secure the border. Why on earth does his team think it’s a good idea to replicate the conditions that caused Europe’s mass migration crisis directly to the south of our country?

And that’s not all. A hot war with the cartels also hands governments like Russia or Iran an easy way to give Washington a taste of its own medicine by waging a proxy war on our border.

All of that is bad enough, but on top of that, it won’t even work. Attacks on the cartels will not stop the drug trade, and they especially won’t put an end to fentanyl production.

These cartels are not unaccustomed to having their infrastructure seized or destroyed, and their leaders captured or killed. That has been happening continuously for the last fifty years. Over that period, as individual cartel leaders were taken out and specific smuggling routes or stockpiles were discovered and dismantled, the cartel model has thrived—not despite the crackdown on the drug trade that started under Nixon, but because of it.

When the War on Drugs was launched in the 1970s, the illegal drugs being smuggled into the US were mainly coming from South American countries like Colombia via propeller planes or small boats. As law enforcement agencies like the new DEA put an end to that, drug trafficking shifted to over-land routes that were much harder to stop.

The cartels in northern Mexico grew to prominence because the approach and extent of the crackdown on drug smuggling created demand for their services. Many leaders and even several entire cartels have come and gone, but the demand for their services remains strong.

Americans pay over $100 billion a year for illegal drugs. As long as that remains the case, people will find a way to meet that demand.

That’s especially true thanks to the adoption of synthetic drugs like fentanyl. Now, all it takes is a couple hundred dollars worth of industrial chemicals and a tub to produce millions of dollars worth of fentanyl—which, thanks to its potency, is also much easier to hide and traffic than plant-based drugs. Even successfully taking out all the Mexican cartels would not be enough to stop fentanyl production. As long as prohibition laws keep fueling demand for it, fentanyl is here to stay.

As Americans, we have to start facing the fact that so many people in our country are desperate for substances that make them numb to their lives. If we can begin to address some of the many factors that are causing that while abandoning the prohibitionist policies that have been driving people to rely on criminal organizations to get their fix for over half a century, our drug and trafficking problems will improve drastically.

But the worst thing we can do is significantly escalate the approach that brought this terrible status quo about in the first place. Destroying some more cartel infrastructure or taking out a few more drug “kingpins” will not suddenly start making a difference. And using the military to do so risks making our current situation significantly worse. The American public has enjoyed a lot of distance from the direct consequences of Washington’s wars for a long time. Starting a hot war on our own border under the naïve theory that it will effectively dismantle the drug trade and stay contained will bring an abrupt and unnecessary end to our long period of peace on the home front.

All captives will be released from Gaza if Israel agrees to end war, Hamas says

The group says it's ready to negotiate a ‘comprehensive package’ that accounts for every Palestinian held in Israel

By MEE staff

Published date: 18 April 2025 

https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/all-captives-will-be-released-gaza-if-israel-agrees-end-war-hamas-says

The head of the Hamas political bureau, Khalil al-Hayya, said on Thursday that all remaining captives will be released from Gaza if Israel ends its war on the enclave.

Hamas, he said, is ready for “comprehensive package negotiations, including the release of all Israeli captives in exchange for an agreed number of Palestinian prisoners, the complete withdrawal of the occupation army from the Gaza Strip, starting reconstruction, and the lifting of the siege”.

“The leadership of Hamas and the resistance factions are keen to stop the barbaric aggression and genocidal war,” he added, noting that it was Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who reneged on the ceasefire agreement that started on 19 January and lasted six weeks.

The deal was meant to have three phases, but when it was time for Israel to withdraw from Gaza entirely in phase two, it reimposed a total siege on any goods, food, and aid coming into the Strip.

By 15 March, Netanyahu had resumed a full-scale war on Gaza.

So far, more than 51,000 Palestinians have been killed over the last year and a half, local health officials said.

Hayya said mediators Egypt and Qatar “returned to communicate with us to find a way out of the crisis created by Netanyahu and his government, and we agreed to their proposal at the end of Ramadan, despite our conviction that Netanyahu insists on continuing the war and aggression to protect his political future”.

The holy month ended on 30 March, after which Israel presented a counterproposal that Hayya said bore “impossible conditions”, demanding that Hamas disarm its ranks.

“This is a natural right of our people,” to resist occupation, he said.

Hamas, he said, will not be “part of Netanyahu’s policy of partial agreements” as the group is seeking a permanent end to the war, not a temporary truce.

The deal

In that vein, Hamas’s “comprehensive package” offer also includes talks toward a full accounting by Israel of all Palestinian prisoners, both from the occupied West Bank and Gaza, in exchange for the list of Israeli captives remaining in Gaza.

The names would then be proposed for swaps.

Senior representatives from Hamas came close to an independent agreement directly with the US over captive exchanges last month, when on President Donald Trump’s orders, his hostage envoy, Adam Boehler, went to Doha to engage in unprecedented face-to-face meetings.

Washington designated Hamas a terrorist organisation in 1996.

According to sources that briefed The New York Times, the secret meetings were making progress until the Israelis caught wind of them and then leaked them to the media. Things fell apart quickly.

In his Thursday remarks, Hayya commended Boehler’s comments to Al Jazeera earlier this week, in which he pledged that Israel’s war on Gaza would end “immediately” if all the captives there are released.

But Boehler also put the ball wholly in Hamas’s court.

“They can reach out any time,” he said. “Hamas can end this.”

 

Israeli strikes kill dozens of Palestinians across Gaza

The Israeli army has intensified its attacks since Friday, targeting homes and tent camps

By MEE staff

Published date: 19 April 2025

https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-strikes-kill-dozens-palestinians-across-gaza

At least 70 Palestinians have been killed in their homes and tents as Israeli forces launched a wave of strikes across Gaza since dawn on Friday.

Overnight, an Israeli military helicopter strike on a displaced persons camp near Khan Younis in southern Gaza killed five people. Another airstrike on a makeshift barbershop in the city claimed the lives of at least six more.

Medical sources, quoted by local media, said at least 23 people were killed on Saturday. The report added that a series of Israeli strikes on Khan Younis wounded more than 20 children.

The Palestinian Civil Defence reported that air strikes on homes east of Khan Younis killed 10 members of the same family and wounded many other Palestinians while they were sleeping on Friday.

Local sources said the Israeli army has also resumed shelling areas east of Gaza City in the north and west of Rafah in the south.

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (Unrwa) said around 420,000 Palestinians have been displaced since Israel resumed its attacks on Gaza on 18 March.

The agency added that at least 20 displacement orders were issued by the Israeli military between 18 March and 14 April, resulting in approximately 69 percent of the Gaza Strip falling under active displacement orders, within designated "no-go" zones, or both.

What lies behind Nvidia’s commitment to ‘unswervingly serving the Chinese market’: Global Times editorial

By Global Times

Published: Apr 19, 2025

https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202504/1332424.shtml

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, who has visited China again three months after his trip in January, recently publicly stated that the company would "unswervingly serve the Chinese market" and emphasized China's key role in the global supply chain. He said Nvidia has grown together with the Chinese market and achieved mutual success. Against the backdrop of the US imposing tariffs and banning Nvidia's export of H20 chips to China, Huang's visit and his emphasis that China is a "very important market for Nvidia" can be seen as US companies' indirect resistance to US government's protectionist trade policies. His stance, viewing China as an opportunity rather than a threat, and the call for cooperation rather than decoupling, resonates strongly with the American tech and business community.

China is one of the world's largest consumer markets, and its thriving industrial ecosystem and broad application scenarios provide crucial momentum for continuous innovation for many American companies like Nvidia. As Huang put it, in-depth cooperation with Chinese companies has enabled it to evolve into an even more competitive international enterprise. Previously, some US business leaders also noted that they don't need to hitch a ride with the US government, they need the government to clear the path for us. The importance and urgency of cooperation with China have "unexpectedly" been highlighted against the backdrop of the US' reckless imposition of tariffs.

Not just in the tech and business industry, the call for "We need China" has recently spread across various sectors of American society. A recent poll by Pew Research Center also revealed surprising results. The survey showed that fewer and fewer Americans now view China as an enemy, with significant year-over-year decline in the share of Americans with an unfavorable view of China over the past five years. Bloomberg described this as "a sentiment that runs counter to the tariff," calling the finding "surprising." Moreover, on overseas social platforms like TikTok, Chinese e-commerce has unexpectedly risen to prominence, sparking a new wave of "Made in China" enthusiasm among US consumers. Many influencers have posted unboxing videos of products bought from Chinese e-commerce platforms, exclaiming that they can get the same quality items for just a tenth of the price.

Despite Washington frequently sent signals of confrontation, which has pushed China-US economic relations to the brink and, American society is not in favor of a zero-sum game between the two countries. Pew's survey results, to some extent, puncture the bubble of the so-called tariff policies inflated by Washington. Relevant approach has not reflected public opinion in the US, but instead oversimplifies the complexity and multifaceted nature of the bilateral relationship, turning it into a full-scale confrontation. Washington's abuse of tariffs ignores the high degree of economic complementarity between the two countries and the practical needs of their people, creating chaos and uncertainty for both the US and the global economy - something the American public is feeling firsthand.  

Those who are "surprised" by public opinion should reflect on what exactly is American public's attitude toward China, and who is "influencing" Americans' perceptions of China. Over the past few years, the so-called "China threat" has almost become the default opening line for politicians when discussing China, and the attitudes of some members of the public have also been affected. "China is taking advantage of the US," "the US must get the trade imbalance fixed," and "pursuing economic containment of China to achieve 'America First'" - this is the outdated logic behind Washington's so-called tariff policies toward China.

China-US economic and trade cooperation has brought enormous economic benefits to both sides, and the US has benefited just as much as China. The US imports a large volume of consumer goods, intermediate goods, and capital goods from China, supporting the development of its manufacturing supply chains and industrial chains, enriching consumer choices, lowering the cost of living, and improving the real purchasing power of the American public, especially for middle- and lower-income groups. When taking into account goods trade, services trade, and the local sales revenue of domestic enterprises operating in each other's countries, the economic gains from China-US trade are roughly balanced. These facts cannot be concealed by lies or slander; in fact, the more China-US economic and trade relations come under strain, the more likely these truths are to resonate within the US. 

Gavin Newsom, governor of California, recently announced plans to sue the US federal government over its abuse of tariff policies, stating, "We're standing up for American families who can't afford to let the chaos continue."

The hope of the China-US relationship lies in the people, its foundation is in the two societies, its future depends on the youth, and its vitality comes from exchanges at subnational levels. According to the public opinion survey conducted by the Global Times Institute (GTI) on "mutual perceptions between China and the US" in 2024, around 90 percent of respondents from both China and the US express concern over bilateral relations, with mainstream public opinion in both countries favoring strengthened economic and trade exchanges, people-to-people exchanges, and cooperation on climate change. 

The phenomenal grassroots interactions between Americans and Chinese on social media recently also reflect that, beneath the anti-China clamor stirred up by some Washington politicians, there remains a strong, constructive desire among the people of both nations for peaceful coexistence and cooperative engagement. If the US continues to go its own way, pressing China with tariff blackmail and inciting for China-US "decoupling," the growing opposition from their voters may become a political reality that Washington can no longer ignore.

End war now: Signers on petitions in Israel exceed 120,000

Military officers, police, veterans, professionals back 43 petitions calling for ceasefire, hostage deal

Abdelraouf Arnaout, Ahmed Asmar  |17.04.2025 

https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/end-war-now-signers-on-petitions-in-israel-exceed-120-000/3541015

JERUSALEM / ANKARA

More than 120,000 people in Israel have signed 43 petitions demanding an end to the war on Gaza and a prisoner exchange, according to the “Restart Israel” website.

The platform allows Israelis to review and sign petitions electronically. As of Thursday, 120,522 people had signed calls urging the return of hostages and an immediate end to the war.

Sixteen of the petitions were signed by over 10,000 members of the military, including veterans, reservists, and soldiers from multiple brigades, elite units, and intelligence branches.

The remaining 27 petitions and letters were signed by civilian professionals, including academics, writers, poets, artists, engineers, and other professionals.

Notable figures among the signees include former Prime Minister Ehud Barak, former Chief of Staff Dan Halutz, four former navy commanders—Ami Ayalon, Yedidia Yaari, Alex Tal, and Dudu Ben-Besht—and three ex-leaders of Flotilla 13: Ran Galinka, Uzi Livant, and Tzvika Erez.

Two former artillery commanders, Avraham Bar David and Doron Kadmiel, also signed, along with other senior military figures such as Amram Mitzna, Avi Mizrahi, Amos Malka, Amnon Reshef, Moshe Sukenik, Nimrod Sheffer, and Ilan Biran.

The petitions uniformly call for the release of 59 Israeli hostages held in Gaza, 24 of whom are believed to be alive, and for a ceasefire.

On Friday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused the military signatories of insubordination and threatened to dismiss them. He claimed foreign-funded groups were backing the effort to bring down his coalition, which took office in late 2022.

He described the petitioners as “a small, noisy, anarchistic, and disconnected group of pensioners” and said anyone inciting disobedience would be expelled.

The petition movement followed the collapse of the first phase of a ceasefire and hostage-prisoner exchange deal, which began on Jan. 19 with Qatari and Egyptian mediation and US support. While Hamas complied with the terms, Netanyahu, under pressure from his far-right coalition, refused to move to phase two. Israel resumed military operations on March 18.

The second year of genocide in Gaza has seen more than 51,000 Palestinians killed since October 2023, the majority of them women and children.

In November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant over war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice over its actions in the enclave.