But several folders are also under way in the WTO

Sino-US relations are now know their first big crisis since arriving at the White House of Barack Obama. In his duties, he had displayed an attitude of openness towards Beijing. Also a global economic shift to his advantage, China would have decided of to engoufrer into this breach to assert its power Between the Copenhagen Summit, in which it is illustrated by its spirited little to make strong proposals, and the all-new episode on the arms sales to Taiwan, Beijing is clearly no longer suffer the diktat of anyone. Before this change in tone, Washington first appeared stunned: on his trip to Beijing, the US President had seemed unable to get any concession from its counterpart. But the case of the arms sales to Taiwan is an opportunity for the United States to reaffirm their firmness. The list of litigation risk lie It is already provided...

The matter of arms sales is currently the most difficult point. It begins on the paradox of the American position: in 1979, Washington diplomatically recognized China, over the island of Taiwan, de facto independent. This has not prevented the United States to continue to support militarily Taiwan. While Beijing has strongly increased its military arsenal in Taiwan, he considered a "rebel province", Washington has validate, in Congress, the principle of an arms sale to 6.4 billion to Taipei. Beijing immediately announced the freezing of its military relations with the United States, but has also threatened retaliatory US firms involved in contracts with Taiwan. A climbing yet to, because it would be difficult to justify to the WTO.

While the White House announced yesterday evening that Barack Obama would soon meet with the Dalai Lama, Beijing is threatening. Even if all predecessors of Barack Obama met the Tibetan leader in exile, the voltage on this subject is more palpable. End of 2008, China had not hesitated to cancel an EU-China Summit to protest against a meeting between Nicolas Sarkozy, who then chaired the EU, and the Dalai Lama.

On the economic front, the Western United States in mind, criticize Beijing the undervaluation of its currency, as head of a part of the Chinese trade surplus. Corollary, they want that Beijing develops its domestic consumption, to rebalance world trade (see above). Saturday, a Chinese official estimated that an appreciation of the yuan would be possible the day where Westerners would cease to support their own economies with stimulus.

In commercial matters, disputes multiply. Google woes on Chinese soil turned into political case, the United States insisting both on issues of censorship that is the case on its commercial dimension. But several folders are also under way in the WTO. Washington took steps to import certain products of Chinese steel and tires produced in China. A procedure is also launched at the WTO to protest against limitations exerted by Beijing on its own exports of raw materials. Beijing, for its part, has opened an anti-dumping against car parts inquiry and poultry from the United States. And multiplies the verbal assaults against us protectionism.