By Nirmal P. Acharya

In my view, the most interesting aspect of President Trump's inauguration was to take on the Democratic opponents represented by Joe Biden and to woo China.

In his inaugural address, he completely repudiated the Biden administration and announced the immediate rescinding of all executive orders issued by Biden. That's pretty tough. Earlier, President Trump publicly expressed his desire to visit China within 100 days of taking office, saying that “together, the United States and China can solve all the problems in the world.”

In fact, President Biden is not entirely without a legacy to pass on to President Trump. The raging fire in Los Angeles has not been extinguished, which is an unavoidable legacy for President Trump.

The fact that the US has a weaker national mobilization capacity than China cannot be hidden. The more important fact, however, is that America's military capabilities are also weaker than China's. President Trump seems to have realized that the US no longer has the ability to threaten China with violence. President Trump’s high-profile invitation to the Chinese government to attend his presidential inauguration ceremony and high-level reception of the Chinese special envoy once again confirmed the old adage that “an undefeated opponent is a friend.”

On the eve of the Chinese envoy’s departure, a Chinese official spokesman issued the following statement: “China's development has a clear historical logic and strong internal driving force, and China’s goals are aboveboard.” At the same time, President Trump said he wants to visit China within 100 days.

China and the US have entered an era of mutual interest. And in this era, projects like MCC are destined to be lonely and awkward. The Western hegemony is over and economic performance says it all. While, America itself isn’t owned by Americans, our politicians still are.