Donald Trump has defended the trade war he launched against China during his presidency, insisting he was preventing “the rape of America” by standing up to the rival superpower.
Mr Trump – who is again seeking the Republican presidential nomination in 2024 despite facing a host of legal issues and investigations both criminal and civil arising from his chaotic first term in the White House – struck a combative note in his dealings with Beijing throughout his presidency, kicking off an economic face-off that saw each side slap retaliatory import tariffs on billions of dollars’ worth of each others’ goods.
