The Bunker – News without the nonsense Trump vs. Xi Jinping – Who's more powerful?
Nov 12, 2025
Elizabeth Economy, a senior fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution and former Senior Advisor for China in the U.S. Department of Commerce, dives into the tense interplay between Trump and Xi Jinping. She discusses how Trump’s retreat from global leadership has set the stage for Xi's ambitions to elevate China’s global role. Economy highlights China's economic disparities and the risks of their technological infrastructures, while assessing the implications of the U.S.-China trade war and the significance of Taiwan in Xi’s strategy.
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Trump's Transactional Worldview
- Donald Trump favours U.S. retrenchment from global leadership and transactional relations with both democracies and autocracies.
- He still views China as the greatest long-term strategic challenge across tech, security, and trade.
Xi's Vision Of Reclaiming Centrality
- Xi Jinping believes the East is rising and China must reclaim centrality on the global stage across economy, security and norms.
- He uses initiatives like Belt and Road and military expansion to reshape the international system to Chinese priorities.
Continuity With Sharper Centralization
- Xi's agenda continues historical aims for national rejuvenation but centralizes power and reasserts Party control more than predecessors.
- He tightened societal controls and amplified military ambition, including overseas basing for the first time under his rule.
