Abstract
Hegemony in the global trading system can be analyzed as the ability to set the rules for the system, either on the multilateral or the regional level. President Trump is opposed to the rules-based trading system in the regional as well as the multilateral context. His main concern is the reduction of bilateral trade deficits under unilateral pressure. While he has targeted most U.S. trading partners, his major concern is China’s neo-mercantilism. Ignoring the opportunities that the WTO would afford for concerted multilateral action, U.S. policy instead is bent on undermining the WTO, which is seen as a straight-jacket and an irrelevant playground at the same time. In refusing to play a constructive role maintaining and developing the world’s trading system, the Trump Administration is giving up any leadership claims on trade. This situation does not lead to a hegemonic transition, but rather to disruption and fragmentation and to the loss of the hegemonic role of the U.S. without a successor being able to follow in its footsteps.
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Falke, A. (2021). Wasting Hegemony in the Global Trading System: Trump’s Trade Policy. In: Böller, F., Werner, W. (eds) Hegemonic Transition. Palgrave Studies in International Relations. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-74505-9_5
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