Trump is definitely an unconventional US president in many ways, including when it comes to China policy. There are special challenges to understanding his policy.

Tillerson’s replacement by Pompeo will see a more hawkish State Department, especially on China.

With the selection of CIA Director Mike Pompeo to replace Rex Tillerson as secretary of state, China in particular is more likely to become a target of the Trump administration.

Competition can be healthy for both China and the US, provided it doesn’t get out of hand.

The US faces three difficult questions.

The US should cool it on China.

Trump attacked China incessantly on the campaign trail. Since he took office however, the US is closer to China than it ever was under Obama.

Expected by many to be a showdown, a clash between the world’s two powerhouse economies, the long awaited meeting between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, fell far short of that. While the meeting itself was lackluster in regards to the fierce clash many had expected, it did produce two somewhat substantial outcomes — or at least the beginnings.

Difficulties for the U.S. are not opportunities for China. The road to make America great again leads to Beijing; and for China to be strong and prosperous, effective cooperation from the American side is also indispensable.

Trump’s ascension to power was bad news for Beijing, especially because his “Make America Great Again” vision collides with Xi’s “Chinese dream” to make this the “Chinese century.” Yet China thus far has not only escaped any punitive American counteraction on trade and security matters, but also the expected Trump-Xi bonhomie at Mar-a-Lago could advertise that the more things change, the more they stay the same in U.S. foreign policy.