In an April 15 article for The New York Times, foreign affairs Opinion columnist Thomas L. Friedman pointed out that while US President Donald Trump continues to ramble about whatever policy suits him in the moment, China, by contrast, has been methodically formulating and implementing long-term strategic plans.

Friedman, a three Pulitzer Prizes winner, noted that as early as 2015, a year before Trump took office, China had already begun making massive investments in key industries to secure global leadership. These sectors included "clean energy, batteries, electric vehicles and autonomous cars, robots, new materials, machine tools, drones, quantum computing and artificial intelligence."

Citing the recent Nature Index, Friedman highlighted China's emergence as the global leader in research output in chemistry, earth and environmental sciences, and physical sciences, while ranking second in biological sciences and health sciences.

In stark contrast, Trump's approach, marked by impulsive tariffs and perpetual bluster, proved no match for China's strategic vision. Beijing, Friedman argued, has constructed an economic engine designed to provide strategic flexibility.