Former White House trade negotiator Cleit Willems called the / a> a trade war against China and some other countries is a boon for the elected head of state Joe Biden a>. The diplomat’s words are quoted by CNBC.
Willems calls the increased duties on imported goods introduced as part of the trade war as necessary “leverage” on China and other countries. They can be used to achieve the desired result in the international arena.
“You may love tariffs or hate them, but they raised important questions about multilateral trade relations, and I hope that the new Biden administration will use this leverage to achieve the desired results,” Willems said.
At the same time, according to him, Washington needs to cooperate more closely with other countries: “I hope they [the Biden administration] will attach much more importance to the negotiations.”
The trade war began at the end of 2017 after the introduction of increased duties on a number of Chinese, South Korean and Mexican goods. Later, the restrictions extended to goods from other countries, mainly to the members of the EU . Trump has repeatedly called their policies protectionist and unfair towards the United States, and also accused Beijing of stealing intellectual property. At the same time, many economists have called for the lifting of the restrictions, as they slow down global growth, especially amid the coronavirus pandemic.