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Less than a week after China's rare-earth counterattack, the West has already burned the pot.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Bescent hastily declared that "the two sides still maintain good communication".
Trump first whispered on social media to impose three-digit tariffs, and two days later suddenly changed his mouth and said, "Don't worry about China, everything will go well."
In addition to rare earths, China, which also controls a series of strategic materials such as superhard materials and lithium batteries.
This combination of punches directly hit the weakness of the American industrial system.
Rare land cards make the United States tense
In the field of military industry, rare earths are irreplaceable. Rare earth materials must be used in the stealth coating of F-35 fighter jets, the guidance system of Patriot missiles, and the sonar equipment of nuclear submarines.
In this key area, China has absolute power of speech.China's new rare earth rules not only expand the scope of controlled rare earth elements, but also incorporate production technology and its overseas uses into control for the first time.
If rare earth control is a heavy punch, then the subsequent series of measures constitute a complete combination punch.
China's Ministry of Transport issued an announcement on October 10 that it will impose a special port service fee on ships owned by U.S. companies and individuals from October 14.
On the same day, the State Administration for Market Regulation announced an investigation into Qualcomm. From resources to logistics, from trade to antitrust, China's countermeasures cover many key areas.
In September this year, the Sino-U.S. Economic and Trade Team had just held talks in Madrid, Spain, with signs of easing between the two sides, but only half a month later, the U.S. Department of Commerce issued a new "transparency rule" on export control.
Subsidiaries of Chinese enterprises that will be included in the "entity list" are also all included in the scope of the restriction, this adjustment has led to the restricted Chinese enterprises from the original more than 3,000 to thousands or even tens of thousands.
In fact, the U.S. injustice toward China is not a question of one or two "small moves", but of continued pressure for eight years.
In 2017, Trump first entered the White House, then launched a trade war against China. tariffs, technological blockades, entity lists, various means in turn.
After Biden took office in 2021, not only did he not cancel these measures, but he further increased his efforts in fields such as semiconductors and artificial intelligence. Trump's return to the White House in 2025 continued this line and even intensified it.
In the past eight years, China has been under all-round pressure, but this pressure has also inspired the fighting spirit of 1.4 billion Chinese people. In areas that have been "stuck", China has increased investment in research and development and technological research efforts.
In areas where it has advantages, China has improved its industrial chain layout and export control system. Now China is fully prepared.
On October 11, Trump announced that he would re-impose three-digit tariffs on Chinese goods.
In contrast, the Chinese stock market under the government's "window guidance" did not show sharp volatility and showed considerable resilience.
Domestic anxiety is spreading in the United States, and once the supply of rare earth is interrupted, not only military-industrial enterprises will be affected, but civilian sectors such as new energy vehicles will also suffer.
While the United States is struggling to find alternatives, building a complete rare-earth industrial chain will take years and huge investments.
Even more troubling is the beginning of divisions within the United States, where the US cable news network rarely reports that "China says it has not resumed trade tensions with the United States, and Trump is the culprit."
Who has the initiative in the negotiation?
Faced with China's tough countermeasures, the U.S. has begun to release signals of willingness to negotiate, and Bessent has repeatedly said "the two sides remain in good communication" and revealed that Trump said tariffs would not take effect before November 1.
The U.S. proposed a condition to extend the temporary period of tariffs in exchange for China's concessions on certain issues, but this so-called "condition" did not exist in China's view.
Because the tariff suspension is for both sides, there is no problem that one side unilaterally gives the benefit of the other.
A spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of Commerce said: "We cannot talk on the one hand and threaten to threaten new restrictions."
These words express the essence of the current situation: the initiative in negotiations is no longer in the hands of the United States.
Eight years ago, when facing the pressure of the United States, China still needed to be cautious and seek room for compromise. But today's China, in terms of economic strength and industrial resilience, is no longer the same.
More importantly, after eight years of hard work, China has a clearer understanding of how to deal with the United States, and has a more accurate grasp of its own advantages and the United States 'weaknesses.
This round of trade friction has exposed the profound contradictions in the process of globalization, and it has become increasingly difficult for a country to arbitrarily abolish or reshape the rules of globalization.
For China, this countermeasure is not to provoke conflict, but to defend its legitimate interests, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce clearly stated that the export control measures for related items such as rare earth.
It is a legitimate practice to improve its own export control system in accordance with laws and regulations, and compliance applications will be allowed as always. Any attempt to force China to succumb through pressure will pay a price.
China will not take the initiative to provoke a trade war, but it will never flinch in the face of pressure.
It is the United States, not China, that is increasingly anxious. This anxiety comes from the fear of losing a dominant position and the inability to adapt to the pressure at will no longer be able to do so as before.
From a longer-term perspective, the significance of this contest far exceeds trade itself. It is related to the reshaping of the global order, how big powers get along with each other, and where the world will go in the future.
conclusion
The eight-year accounting has turned over, and the time for accounting has come, but this is not the end, but the beginning of a new phase.
Regardless of how the two sides play next, one thing is certain.
The era when you could unilaterally give orders to other countries is gone forever.