COMING UP TRUMPS?

Editors Note： Hot on the heels of the presidential election result， Beijing Review reporter Liu Yunyun sat down with Zhou Mingwei， President of China International Publishing Group. Zhou， a seasoned expert on China-U.S. relations who is also a member of the Committee of Foreign Affairs of the Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Conference National Committee， shared his views on how the new president-elect， Donald Trump， could transform his surprise victory into a meaningful presidency.

Beijing Review： Were you surprised by Trumps victory in the U.S. presidential election？

Zhou Mingwei： Trump has never failed to surprise people. His winning of the election against all odds is just the tip of a much larger surprise that he could bring to the world， though no one knows for sure what that could be.

The essential difference between a Hillary Clinton presidency and a Trump one is that everyone knows what Clinton would do， but no one knows what Trump will do. U.S. society is fed up with the establishment and has opted for change no matter what. President Barack Obama promised “change”during his presidency， but failed to deliver.

Now the question is： What does Trumps presidency mean to people in the United States， to China-U.S. relations and to the rest of the world？

The United States under Trump will focus more on its domestic agenda. He could potentially put a brake on interventionist activities and thereby make the United States more compatible with other nations that dont share its ideology. I personally think it is very immature to venture into an otherwise controllable situation like the South China Sea disputes. If the U.S. Government continues to believe that its foreign policy objectives—whether related to its pivot to Asia strategy or to U.S. involvement elsewhere in the world—can be attained by flexing its military might， then it is much mistaken.

Could Trumps presidency open a new chapter in China-U.S. relations？

I think our first and foremost challenge is that not much information about his China policy is available right now for assessment. We shall have to wait a while to see whom he chooses for his cabinet.

As far as China is concerned， who becomes the next U.S. president isnt hugely significant， because China is willing to talk with anyone and engage in constructive communication. Trump is known for his pragmatism， and so is China. This could serve as a basis for healthy dialogue.

But， if he acts to secure national interests to the exclusion of everything else—for example， by resorting to protectionism—then this will be detrimental not only to China， but also to the United States itself， and its goals will remain out of reach. China and the United States are stakeholders in world affairs， and protectionism will harm both sides. He might， however， have a measure of global vision and an eye for the bigger picture： the common interests of the peoples of different countries.

Trumps victory may bring uncertainties to China-U.S. relations in the near future， but it also has the potential to create opportunities for both sides. Nonetheless， economic cooperation remains a great stabilizer for China-U.S. relations， and we expect this to hold particularly true under Trumps presidency.

How can the United States secure its supremacy in the face of the collective rise of other nations？

To maintain the United States unrivalled status in the world， Trump has two options： containment or engagement.

The United States under Trump is likely not to retreat from its global strategy， but rather to reinforce its influence on other countries in a different way. I think that as a businessman， Trump knows that no nation state can thrive on the collapse of others. The world is now so closely interlinked that everyone has a stake in others success. Trump has highlighted his flair for negotiation， so by attracting more countries to engage in business with the United States， conducted according to its rules， the nation could prevail.

Will Trump relinquish U.S. hegemony in world affairs？ This is not going to happen. His campaign message was “make America great again，”which means he is looking to increase， not diminish， U.S. influence. The difference is he may take an alternative path.

For instance， he posed no challenge to Russia during his campaign. Thus， he seems to have no intention of diverting attention from domestic predicaments by pointing fingers at outsiders. Rather， he might adopt the more cost-effective means of negotiation and cooperation in order to achieve his goal and thereby gain greater leverage for his country.

This years U.S. election was not a question of choosing between two candidates； it was a choice between two different approaches to improving the United Statesdomestic environment and strengthening the nations international influence. As the outcome has demonstrated， the U.S. electorate has abandoned the Clinton way and placed its hope in Trump.