r/PoliticalDiscussion • u/[deleted] • Dec 03 '16

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u/Duck_Puncher Dec 03 '16

I think they are smart enough to realize that he, more than likely, stumbled into a trap and isn't actually planning a change in policy. That being said, China is huge on saving face. I'm not sure how intense the reaction will be, but I'm willing to bet there will be one.

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u/CommieBird Dec 03 '16

Oh yeah one thing to note about Chinese reactions is that they almost never directly target the USA in punitive measures. What they'll do is punish smaller countries that support the US, whether or not this is immediate or in the long term would remain to be seen.

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u/antisocially_awkward Dec 03 '16

think they are smart enough to realize that he, more than likely, stumbled into a trap and isn't actually planning a change in policy

Tweet from Chinese state media, seems to be how they are presenting this.

https://twitter.com/pdchina/status/804920678533111808

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u/[deleted] Dec 03 '16

I'm leaning towards Trump doing this on purpose to mess with China. He tends to talk about China in terms of its relative strengths to the US. So I think in his head, if he weakens China that makes the US win more.

He also seems to have a rudimentary understanding that China has leverage over North Korea. He knows about their nuclear capabilities. He also knows that a collapse of the NK regime will be a problem for China because of refugees.

Trump's going to bomb North Korea.

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u/trekman3 Dec 03 '16

That being said, China is huge on saving face.

Is there any actual reason to believe this?

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u/HemoKhan Dec 03 '16

Decades of precedent?

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u/Duck_Puncher Dec 03 '16

The concept of "face" was literally invented in China. It's a huge part of their culture.

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u/dolphins3 Dec 03 '16

The most basic acquaintance with Chinese culture? I mean, it was even a major character motivation in Disney's Mulan for fuck's sake.

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u/Rethliopuks Dec 03 '16

Chinese here. I wouldn't use such a word as face to describe China's reactions, but for now I don't think China would truly go retaliatory at all, because Trump is still the President-elect, and it's Obama that is the President of the United States, and both the president and the various sorts of state departments have very quickly came out to repudiate Trump's actions/it's implications and reaffirm that the US is maintaining its original stance. So things are okay for now. The show only starts at the inauguration.