CorporateNature Metaphor Series, No 71.
China is a juvenile elephant, in both economic, military and scientific terms. Elephants keep growing until they are 20 years old. China has at least a decade more to go until it reaches full size. Whereas the US is a full-grown tiger which has already reached the peak of its power.
The juvenile elephant is still vulnerable to predators but give it another 10 years and no rival (or predator) will dare to confront it. So Donald Trump, while generally lacking in strategic thinking, is for once acting strategically. He is aware that despite his "Make America Great Again" sloganeering, his country is an ageing tiger. He is playing hardball with China now because this is the last opportunity for the US to influence China. In 10 years, China will simply brush the US aside - not necessarily as an enemy but as a nuisance.
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| Juvenile elephant (Source: Wikipedia) |
