The American people have chosen their leader for the next four years – Donald J. Trump – much to the anxiety of the rest of the world.
To some, Trump is regarded as a cowboy shooting from the hip. To others he may become hero of the world if he restores world peace.
But for Hong Kong and China his presidency could spell disaster if he goes ahead with a promise of imposing 60 per cent tariffs on all goods manufactured in Hong Kong/China.
And not only that, the front runner for Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, is anti-Hong Kong, anti-China and pro Taiwan independence. He naively listens, and believes, to every word uttered by Hong Kong activists in exile. His mind is clouded by the false narratives relating to Hong Kong’s national security laws, which are less stringent than the laws of the USA.
One redeeming factor for Trump though, is his dislike for wars and his promises that he will cease the wars in Ukraine and Gaza. How he plans to do this is anyone’s guess, but the press has reported that a meeting with Russian president Putin is high on the agenda. Trump was also quoted as saying he will bring Chinese president Xi Jinping to the table. That would be easier said than done. First, he would have to change his attitude dramatically towards China and that would entail freezing all US-imposed tariffs on Chinese goods.
To end the war in Gaza, it would be a simple matter of stopping the shipment of arms to Israel. But then he would face the wrath of both the war-mongering Republican-held Congress and Senate.
Trump also said several times that he would talk to Xi about freeing media mogul Jimmy Lai, currently facing charges of collusion and subversion and “take him out of the country”. That is also nonsense and impossible, even for the president of the United States. Hong Kong has an independent judicial system guaranteed by the Basis Law and the hearing is still ongoing. Lai is expected to present his defence on November 20. But again, that’s just plain Trump-talk with another broken promise to Lai’s son Sebastien.
It is very likely that Trump will go ahead with the tariffs at the expense of losing friendship with Xi. But they never learn. Tariffs are not the answer in trade, wars as incumbent president Joe Biden has found out. Tariffs are passed on to the consumer, thus increasing inflation, which has become the breaking point for Biden and presidential candidate and loyalist Kamala Harris. Harris admitted in a press interview that she would follow Biden’s philosophies if elected. And that was her downfall. Since then, during his campaign Trump came up with the slogan “Are you better off now than four years ago?” America was suffering and they wanted a better life. Harris offered them nothing.
The one to watch in the new regime is Florida senator Marco Rubio, who, thankfully does not have the crudeness and brutality of the previous foreign secretary under Trump, Mike Pompeo, but he still has the venom of a viper. But Rubio is an important voice on U.S. foreign policy as a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the most senior Republican on the Senate Intelligence Committee.
It was Rubio who planned closing down the Hong Kong Economic Trade Offices in the US and accused them of spying; it was Rubio who introduced the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act in 2019 and ensured it was continued year after year; it was Rubio who sought to stop our CE John Lee from attending an APEC meeting in San Francisco. It was Rubio (and others) who nominated Hong Kong activists Jimmy Lai Chee-ying, Joseph Zen Ze-kiun, Tonya Chow Hang-tung, Gwyneth Ho Kwai-lam, Lee Cheuk-yan, and Joshua Wong Chi-fung—for the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize for attempting to destroy Hong Kong; it was Rubio who wrote in Fox News, “Now multiple citizens of Hong Kong have tragically ‘lost their lives’ amid the crackdown. Thousands more have been detained, and we have seen reports of others interrogated and tortured for their participation in the protests”, and it was Rubio who introduced the “Hong Kong Safe Harbor Act” which would provide those Hong Kongers who “peacefully protested Beijing’s corrupt justice system”, and have a well-founded fear of persecution, to be eligible for Priority 2 Refugee status”. The list goes on and on.
On Taiwan, Rubio introduced the Taiwan Peace Through Strength Act. The bill would increase the level of critical technologies provided to Taiwan by fast-tracking the transfer of capabilities and increasing joint training and planning. The bill would also increase coordination between the U.S. and Taiwanese militaries to ensure Taiwan is equipped to defend itself against an attack and ‘invasion’ by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).
At a recent press interview, Rubio said he expected Trump to continue to back Taiwan should he win the White House, even though Trump said Taiwan should pay for its own defence. How Trump handles the Taiwan situation remains to be seen.
And when you think the lineup couldn’t get worse, it can. Tipped to take over as Secretary for Defence is Trumps former Secretary of State and rabid China hater Mike Pompeo. If he gets the post one can expect US activities in the South China Sea and around Taiwan to be intensified.
Immediately after the US imposed sanctions on 11 Hong Kong and Mainland citizens, China retaliated and imposed unspecified sanctions against 11 US politicians and heads of organisations promoting democratic causes.
China’s then Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said at the time in 2020, the 11 had "performed badly" on issues concerning Hong Kong.
"The relevant actions of the US blatantly intervened in Hong Kong affairs, grossly interfered in China's internal affairs, and seriously violated international law and the basic norms of international relations," Mr Zhao said.
As for the future, it is not so much watching Trump and what he does to Hong Kong/China but watch his expected foreign secretary Marco Rubio who has only one ambition in life, and that is to destroy China by crippling Hong Kong.
Mark Pinkstone
** The blog article is the sole responsibility of the author and does not represent the position of our company. **