Trump says China 'Caught RED HANDED' allowing oil into N Korea

Looks like Trump may have finally awakened to the fact that Xi has been playing him like an Erhu since they first met. China had and has the ability to stop, slow or terminate North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile programs, for decades If they wanted to. But now with China's own goals for expansion North Korea offers a perfect diversion for the US and it's allies to be focused on a different direction. Counting on China which has it's own strategically adversarial relationship with the U.S. is just plain stupid. Trump ranted about slapping a 45% tariff on Chinese imports into the US. That is about the only thing that will force China to stop North Korea. Let them scream "trade war" if the want, after all nobody dies in a trade war like in a real war.

China plays Trump.

Counting on China which has it's own strategically adversarial relationship with the U.S. is just plain stupid. Trump ranted about slapping a 45% tariff on Chinese imports into the US. That is about the only thing that will force China to stop North Korea

It would be extremely useful for U.S companies to source more of their imports from elsewhere as U.S demand would be enough for companies in say S.E Asia to start a factory with some hope of profitability. That in turn gives other Western countries an opportunity to diversify their imports away from China as well. But you need the weight of demand from the U.S or the E.U to kick that process off. There needs to be a lot more coordination between Western governments and Western businesses for a general move of this nature to be successful.

I'm not advocating a completely adversarial relationship with China, I just think we should be giving ourselves a lot more options.

China plays Trump.

Not just Trump, the Pentagon as well and all the other Presidents before him. For the life of me, I don't know how they didn't see this one coming, even I know the Chinese would never abide by their promises, not surprised at all, but had they done so, then I would have really been surprised.

You guys don't seem to realize just how much money America owes to China. America can talk tough all it wants - it's in China's pocket.

How much the US "owes" to China is in the form of debt instruments. If we choose not to pay, what are they going to do? Start a war? If they did we'd seize those instruments as we have done with every country with whom we had conflicts.

Matt HartwellToday 07:05 am JSTCounting on China which has it's own strategically adversarial relationship with the U.S. is just plain stupid. Trump ranted about slapping a 45% tariff on Chinese imports into the US. That is about the only thing that will force China to stop North Korea

I'm not advocating a completely adversarial relationship with China, I just think we should be giving ourselves a lot more options.

There is a difference between advocating an adversarial relationship, and recognizing that the other party is already carrying on an adversarial relationship with you.

I am no fan of Trump but he is absolutely right on this. China has been playing this two-faced game for too long as it benefits them. Don't buy their excuses about being concerned about instability in North Korea. They aided and abetted North Korea to keep US occupied with this threat and waste time, money, resources while they get to exploit trade deals and build up economy and sail under the radar.

Time to call a spade a spade and start focusing on trade with China as that is the only thing they will listen to and without unfair trade with US their crony capitalism with non-performing loans, currency manipulation and govt interference will start showing cracks. .

You guys don't seem to realize just how much money America owes to China. America can talk tough all it wants - it's in China's pocket.

And China is in America's pocket, who else buys more products and goods from China, the US and China knows this, both sides need each other and both sides would be severely crushed without each other. China doesn't have the upper hand and neither the US to a point, there is a lot the US can do to put more pressure on China to abide by the embargo.

I am no fan of Trump but he is absolutely right on this. China has been playing this two-faced game for too long as it benefits them. Don't buy their excuses about being concerned about instability in North Korea. They aided and abetted North Korea to keep US occupied with this threat and waste time, money, resources while they get to exploit trade deals and build up economy and sail under the radar.

Wow! Can't believe we finally agree on something.

China plays Trump.

Just wait until Trump plays China and vaporizes NK into another U.S. State, confirming what Russia and China fear most. Welcome to the United States of Asia.

You guys don't seem to realize just how much money America owes to China. America can talk tough all it wants - it's in China's pocket.

Wrong again!

bass4funk: Not just Trump, the Pentagon as well and all the other Presidents before him

Who do you think Trump will blame?

SuperLibToday 06:50 am JST

China plays Trump.

*The world plays Trump.

Who do you think Trump will blame?

China

So how will North Korea produce its electricity and other energy requirements without oil? Nuclear power? Trump's plan seems doomed to backfire unless he is really trying to encourage North Korea do develop more nuclear power plants, but why would he do that? The only answer I can come up with is to distract Americans so that they don't notice what else is going on.

I've always known China's government has always been two-faced. Just needed to find good evidence. I'm sure US intelligence has known about it for quite a while, they just weren't allowed to do anything about it because corporate America only see's "money". So, now that China has been blatantly exposed as backstabbers. Unfortunately in China's culture, it's seen as "good" to try and pull a con to bilk someone else if it's seen as advantageous. "It's the fault of the fool for being so gullible to be taken advantage of...." is the ideal behind this. But I also love the saying, "It's not the fault of the honest person who was scammed for trying to trust someone who did not deserve it in the first place."

And I've always known the US government has always been two-faced. They talk about North Korea as a nuclear threat while threatening to attack North Korea with nuclear weapons. They complain about North Korea developing nuclear power while cutting their oil supply. They complain about a dictator ruling North Korea undemocratically, yet support right-wing dictators who oppose democracy in their countries. They talk about fighting terrorism, yet the US is probably the largest promoter and financer of terrorism in the world.