News Analysis
WASHINGTON—As the trade war between the United States and China intensifies, Beijing seems ready to use any means necessary to prolong the fight rather than concede.
Many in Washington argue that sustained high tariffs could ultimately end the trade relationship between the two countries and accelerate long-desired decoupling from China. Losing access to a large U.S. market would also significantly strain the Chinese economy.
Communist China’s rise since joining the World Trade Organization in 2001 has been mainly fueled by controversial trade policies, which include stealing intellectual property, attacking foreign firms operating in the country, and massively subsidizing domestic companies. Hence, Beijing is determined to maintain these mercantilist trade practices, according to Robert Atkinson, president of the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, a science and technology think tank....
