Author: Sheng Tang Rusong Source WeChat official account: The Shopkeeper’s Dao has been reprinted with authorization
British Prime Minister Sunak’s visit to the United States officially ended yesterday, and the two sides reached a high-profile statement titled ‘Atlantic Declaration’, which, as expected, targets China and Russia. The declaration claims that China and Russia have utilized the openness of countries such as the United States and the United States to ‘steal’ advanced Western technology, and this declaration is aimed at making this intention impossible to succeed.
Yes, discussing theft, can there be British people who are more proficient? Not to mention the cultural relics displayed in their museums that plundered the world, even the diamonds and pearls on the head of the British king were stolen by them. The cabinet structure of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom led by Sunak now is also stolen from the Chinese cabinet system. They are used to plunder the world’s gunpowder, to promote their own values on paper, and so on. What is not because of the openness of China and other countries? Why does learning and catching up with Britain and America become ‘theft’ when studying in another country?
As an author of the Guardian in the UK pointed out, due to the UK’s withdrawal from the EU, the UK cannot have a say in Brussels [EU headquarters], so the US’s emphasis on the UK has become less important. This sentence is concise and direct to the main point. This is also one of the main arguments I made when analyzing Brexit. If the UK loses its say in the EU, then the US will have to rely more on itself in its policy towards Europe rather than the UK, which was originally at the top of the EU’s power. After losing this voice, Britain either chooses an independent path to become a pole in the future multipolar world, or relies more on the breath of the United States to maintain its dream of becoming a great nation. Now, it is clear that the UK can only choose the latter.
Although we see the United States and Britain working together to build the Anglo Saxon Group and pulling Australia to implement this plan, it’s just that the United States needs a loyal ally. In any case, the UK has a profound foundation in international relations, as well as a flashy title as the head of the Commonwealth and one of the permanent members of the United Nations. Its influence in international relations and its skillful manipulation of international relations are all things that the United States needs to rely on. But the United States can never see Britain as its equal partner. All it needs is a loyal dog, not a partner.
Sunak’s visit to the United States provides us with a window to observe how the United States treats its loyal dogs. In other words, in the current international context and with the current strength of the United States, what else can the United States give its loyal dogs? If even Britain cannot get what it wants from the United States, what about other countries? What else can they hope for?
What does Sunak most want during his visit to the United States? What do British people most want from the United States? The answer is self-evident. As the UK, which is currently experiencing a wave of strikes due to inflation, what it needs most is an economic recovery and a recovery in the international market. Since Brexit, the UK has finally secured trade negotiations with the EU after lengthy negotiations. But the effectiveness of this negotiation is still far inferior to the benefits it can gain within the EU itself. Anyway, the UK has become estranged from the EU in terms of trade, rather than closer. This makes its expansion in the external market even more urgent. In the current world, there are roughly two markets that can enable Britain to show its strength and achieve economic and trade breakthroughs, one is the United States and the other is China. These are two directions that Brexit is committed to after Brexit, but unfortunately, in March 2017, the UK officially announced Brexit, and in December 2017, Trump won the election of the US president.
Trump fought a trade war with China as soon as he arrived, and as a follower and loyal dog of the United States, Britain naturally had to follow in the footsteps of the United States. So, before Britain could find a diplomatic balance between China and the United States, its relationship with China had already been passively declared difficult to further develop. Even if Britain wants further development with China, Americans will not agree. So, if Britain wants to break through in the trade market, the only choice is the United States.
But six years after Brexit left Europe, the Anglo American trade agreement has not been signed. And when the Conservative Party launched Brexit in the UK, it firmly promised that this agreement would definitely be reached between the UK and the US. It’s just a pity that after so many years, the British government has been changing from one prime minister to another like a horse’s lantern, and every time they go to Washington with great enthusiasm, they just rub their cold buttocks and can only return resentfully. The US UK trade agreement has never been reached. Trump’s unwillingness is understandable, but after Biden came up, it was Wang Gu who talked about him, which actually made the British feel a bit cold.
And this time, Sunak naturally also wants to be able to achieve this goal. If he can get the trade agreement from Biden, his position as British Prime Minister will be more stable. When the next United Kingdom general elections is held, the Conservative Party’s chances of victory will be almost guaranteed. But Biden did not give Sunak face, and in fact, the Indian British Prime Minister would not gain much face in the United States. As the most desired thing for Britain, the United States must still want to stay in exchange for more important support. We can observe this as a follow-up. See what else the United States wants from Britain.
Although Biden did not give Sunac what he wanted the most, he also gave him some comforting pancakes. For example, cooperation between the two sides in new energy and artificial intelligence. Biden promised that the use of batteries in Alternative fuel vehicle in the United States will be open to the United Kingdom, and the global AI regulator will also be located in the United Kingdom. If these benefits were placed a few years ago, we could perhaps see them as the foresight and friendship witness of the governments of the United States and Britain. But now? I think these are just two new cakes drawn by the United States for Britain. The recently signed inflation reduction bill in the United States explicitly excludes subsidies for non US companies to obtain new energy vehicles. This time, the British finally entered the battery industry, which is a bit of benefit to the UK. But whether the British can get this benefit needs their own efforts. After all, the batteries of the CATL have accounted for 70% of the global market, and Tesla has begun to use batteries of the CATL. In this case, if Americans do not use Chinese batteries, they will not have international competitiveness, So why does Britain compete? Moreover, at present, China’s domestic Alternative fuel vehicle market has surpassed that of the United States, and its Alternative fuel vehicle exports are also growing rapidly. In the foreseeable future, this trend is difficult to change, just as it is difficult for us to change the hegemony of the United States in a short time.
If the regulatory authority for artificial intelligence is set up in the UK, it can undoubtedly demonstrate the country’s status as a major power. As a new development direction of human civilization, artificial intelligence, whether you are willing to accept it or not, will eventually develop rapidly. But can this matter be decided by the touch of the upper lip of the United States? Even if this regulatory agency is ultimately set up in London, does it really have the strength to regulate the development of global artificial intelligence? These are all unknowns. Since the West advocates a market economy, does this ultimately have to be decided by the market? Institutions that are not compatible with the global smart market, is this institution set up in the UK solely to regulate the United States and the UK? Does the United States, whose hegemony is declining, really have the power to determine the world at the touch of its mouth?
Or in artificial intelligence, the United States no longer possesses this strength. But in determining the position of NATO’s new secretary-general, the United States can do it just by talking. This is the second most important requirement of Sunac’s trip to the United States. As mentioned earlier, due to Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union, its voice in Europe has greatly decreased. Therefore, if the position of NATO Secretary General can be obtained by the British, it will undoubtedly increase Britain’s voice in Europe. Furthermore, it can also make Britain stand slightly straighter when interacting with the United States. Normally, Biden can agree to this matter. However, in my opinion, although Biden did not explicitly refuse, the United States will ultimately choose someone from a medium-sized European country to take on this position. Just like the current NATO Secretary General Stultenberg is a Norwegians. After all, the vast majority of NATO member states are also EU member states. The Russo-Ukrainian War had already made Europeans feel that they had suffered. If the British were to take away the choice of NATO Secretary General, the attitude of European countries towards the Russo-Ukrainian War would be more negative. If Americans were not mentally ill, they would definitely not choose British people for this position.
In summary, Sunak’s trip to the United States was all he could get, but at the same time, he also paid the price of following the United States against China and Russia. Alternatively, the UK may find it difficult to turn back on Russia, but in the face of China, the world’s second largest market and largest manufacturing country, if the UK also wants to closely follow the US and never turn back. It may not only suffer from the Chinese market in the future, but also from the world’s unanimous aversion to the UK, as the advent of the era of great changes is already visible to the naked eye. But what can British people do?
Now even Britain can only get this big cake when the United States urgently needs help. How can other countries imagine they can get more? Of course, you will never wake up those countries that pretend to sleep. Although the former King Xie Menting was no longer as glorious as before, it was still the goal pursued by many beggars.