It's interesting to hear Chinese academics take a pragmatic, realist view of potential impacts. A prolonged trade spat with a US strongman is hardly a desirable outcome. But even if China's export-oriented industries will suffer due to trade protection measures brewing in the US, EU, and Canada, Trump's domestic focus will likely allow many of China's global ambitions to continue unabated: in Africa, in Central Asia, and possibly in Oceania.

This approach mirrors what the US and Soviet Union pursued during the cold war by winning favors through a mix of economic assistance and direct foreign investment. It's a parallel game whose fruits will pay off in the long term, when China reaches its post-industrial stage, and has to use its network of connections to ensure continued prosperity for its people.