Given the current US-China trade war, what are the feasible off-ramps to end it?
I Think Third party can solve the trade war, like Pakistan who solve the conflict Between US-China in 1970s.
As international arbitration counsel and litigation counsel against ZTE, a PRC State Owned Enterprise I saw my clients only slowly and eventually recognize that doing business with Chinese SOE's was undesirably unlike business with any western enterprises. That lack of understanding of each other by both parties condemned the joint venture to doom.
The fact that there are no shared or agreed common basis of what constitutes legitimate or permissible actions or expectations. This starts with basic law, such as bribery is not allowable. (To be fair, this is a relatively recent "discovery" in certain Western countries.) Competing with your erstwhile joint venturers or the joint venture it is participating in was also completely unexpected. These fundamental differences at the private and intergovernmental levels inevitably lead to conflicts, arbitration and litigation.
Thus, the first departure point for discovering feasible "off-ramps" to the impending trade war is coming to some agreement on basic expectations and behaviours. The second is correcting current errors, which means rectifying and compensating damaged existing parties. The third should be defining and creating mechanisms for establishing shared expectations for joint harmonious behaviours that do not harm or take advantage of either party.
The negotiators on both sides must at least see, and hopefully understand the importance of these factors. If they can accomplish that modest beginning, then mutual interests will have an opportunity for fair consideration.
I fear the economic downswing must clear the situatiion...
When the economic situation in the US gets worse and worse D. Trump may not get elected again...
Currently the trade war escalates because now China for the first time strikes with the rare earth export ban...
Unfortunately for the American AND Chinese people the current Washington Administration fails to understand that the Chinese literally invented the concept of "strategy." Sun Tzu was far from the first or best practitioner. Chinese regimes have been superlatively successful strategists for thousands of years. Only in Disneyland on the Potomac could there be surprise at China's inevitable reaction, or choice of targets.
It may require a post 2020 "system reboot" to restore significant trade. The lack of trust and fears of "unreliability" may require decades to reestablish and overcome on both sides.
A wiser approach by both sides after 2020 may enable the needed fundamental readjustment and establishment of an agreed basic set of parameters. Perhaps the apocryphal curse "May you live in interesting times," can be transformed into an opportunity for a future positive relationship.
I strongly believe the US-China trade war occurs as a result of political change in the US. Discontent regarding bilateral trade with China, which has long been accumulated through the years, has triggered power shift in the US. In addition, the Chinese would never budge as they are ready for all out war. Consequently, this war would keep going on unless another power shift occurs in the US.
I don't think international governance or third country would be able to meditate this conflict. Both countries insist that they are in position to dictate the world. It is not the other way around. The Dispute Settlement Body of the WTO was skipped from the beginning. Hence this conflict can only be solved by the US and China alone.
Good news for free trade from the EU: https://spon.de/afvPS
https://www.dw.com/en/eu-south-american-countries-agree-on-draft-free-trade-treaty/a-49406638
Deal! EU and Mercosur will sign and found the biggest free trade area of the world, soon without the UK though... What a massage in times of Donald Trump's trade war efforts. Good news for free trade from the EU - its biggest trade deal ever went into force (EU-Japan-Free Trade Area)...