Debate in the United States over a new trade war with China: basic arguments Pro et Contra

The tariff issue was put in focus of the internal political discussion of the pro-liberal Democratic and pro-Trump wings in America. Facing the exacerbating of polemics and struggle with the Democrats, D. Trump is in need to present his arguments about tariffs in a more scientific, rather than politicized, populist way. The United States, according to this modified version, plays a special role in the world economy and world trade, providing two key pillars for their functioning. The first is the strategic pillar - the military-strategic role of the United States as a guarantor of the security of the democratic world. The second is the financial pillar, stemming from the role of the dollar as a reserve, exchange and accumulation currency. These two pillars - strategic and financial - are significantly costly and burdensome for America, and must be compensated by the trade partners of the United States. Critics of D. Trump's tariff policy note, that protective tariffs, first of all, are hitting the American consumers, damaging the purchasing power of the households and fueling inflation. For the successful restructuring of the world trading system, in addition to tariff policy, deeper and more comprehensive measures are needed. These include the coordination of exchange rates and trade agreements of various countries, investment in new technologies, coordination of trade policies among allied countries, strengthening trade alliances, and keeping the WTO system afloat. The main negative impact of the tariff policy of the new administration, according to its critics, is that it leads to the destruction of the stabilizing and system-forming role of the United States as a pillar of the open markets in the world economy, that developed after World War II.

US-China relations, US tariff policy, trade wars, reserve currency, US trade deficit, reindustrialization of the United States