The US is the most powerful country in the world when it comes to weapons and military might.

Force is used more often than any other technique to move the country’s agenda forward…..but there is a sector that the US uses sparingly….Trade.

China on the other hand has learned to use trade as a weapon…..

China denies mixing business with politics, yet it has long used trade to punish countries that refuse to toe its line. China’s recent heavy-handed economic sanctioning of South Korea, in response to that country’s decision to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) anti-missile system, was just the latest example of the Chinese authorities’ use of trade as a political weapon.

China’s government has encouraged and then exploited states’ economic reliance on it to compel their support for its foreign-policy objectives. Its economic punishments range from restricting imports or informally boycotting goods from a targeted country to halting strategic exports (such as rare-earth minerals) and encouraging domestic protests against specific foreign businesses. Other tools include suspending tourist travel and blocking fishing access. All are used carefully to avoid disruption that could harm China’s own business interests.

Source: China’s Weaponization of Trade by Brahma Chellaney – Project Syndicate

Maybe the US should take a page from the Chinese playbook…..learn to use our trade as a weapon.

This could go a long way of making the promise of more jobs come true….plus could minimize the use of military force….an aspect that is becoming almost too expensive to continue.