China’s pragmatic approach to Trump’s victory is a worthy lead for others to follow

Keyu Jin sees Confucian wisdom in China’s prudently neutral response to Trump’s winning the White House, as bilateral relations are unlikely to be fundamentally transformed

Reading Time:4 minutes

A billboard foresees US-Russia relations under US President-elect Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, in the town of Danilovgrad, Montenegro, on November 16. The Kremlin has welcomed Trump’s victory. Photo: AFP

Published: 9:04am, 3 Dec 2016Updated: 7:06pm, 3 Dec 2016

Donald Trump’s stunning victory in the US presidential election has shaken the world. From Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto’s conspicuous silence to French President Francois Hollande’s statement that it opens up a “period of uncertainty”, to the Kremlin’s barely concealed giddiness, Trump has not been received internationally like past US presidents. But one country has remained largely unmoved: China.

Trump’s stance on China is well known: he has blamed the country for everything from hacks on his opponent (thought by the US government to be the work of Russia) to climate change (calling it a hoax by China to undermine US competitiveness). And he has promised a 45 per cent tariff on Chinese goods.

Yet, prudence flows through China’s Confucian veins. Rather than jump to conclusions about future US policies, much less take premature action, China’s leaders have remained neutral in their response to Trump’s victory. They seem confident that, though the relationship will change somewhat, it will not be fundamentally transformed. It will still be neither very good nor very bad.

The headline for the cover story in local Chinese magazine Global People translates to “Why did Trump win?”, as seen at a news stand in Shanghai on November 14. Photo: AFP

Under Donald Trump, the US will accept China’s rise – as long as it doesn’t challenge the status quo

It helps that Trump has all but ceased China-bashing since his victory. Instead, he posted on Twitter a video of his granddaughter reciting a poem in Putonghua, which became an instant hit in China. Whether intended explicitly as a message to China or not, the move highlighted the possibility of a difference between Trump’s campaign rhetoric and his actual positions and plans.