China Sees a Chance to Lure Jaded U.S. Allies
Beijing has seized upon the disarray within the trans-Atlantic alliance
Jan. 22, 2026 The Wall Street Journal
HONG KONG—China has seized upon the disarray left by President Trump within the trans-Atlantic alliance, denouncing his push to acquire Greenland and trying to entice U.S. allies with the promise of reliable trade partnerships.
But as some of Washington’s traditional allies tiptoe closer to Beijing, they appear clear-eyed about the danger of leaving the U.S. embrace only to end up in the hands of another superpower.
“In a world of great power rivalry, the countries in between have a choice—compete with each other for favor, or to combine to create a third path with impact,” Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney declared in a speech Tuesday at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
Canada, which Trump has said he would like to annex as the “51st state,” has had to “fundamentally shift our strategic posture,” said Carney.
Carney, who came away from meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing last week with a diplomatic thaw and a trade deal, said Canada, as a “middle power,” plans to be “principled and pragmatic” in its partnerships.
“What we can see in the middle powers is hedging,” said Maria Adele Carrai, an associate professor at the University of Oxford. “This is a moment of uncertainty and they are trying to diversify. They’re not aligning with China, not at all, but opening new dialogues, new alliances, new regional partnerships. Investment and trade are diversified from where it was before.”
As Trump makes aggressive use of tariffs and at one point threatened force to prize Greenland from longstanding ally Denmark, Beijing is trying to seize the moment.
Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng delivered a speech at Davos this week denouncing “rising unilateralism and protectionism” while portraying China as a benefit to the world.
“China is a trading partner, not a rival, for other countries,” he said. “China’s development presents an opportunity, not a threat, to the world economy.”
That message has been a consistent refrain from Chinese leaders.
“Beijing sees the fractures in the trans-Atlantic relationship as an opening,” said Olivia Cheung, a China scholar at King’s College London.
China hopes to improve its relationships with key trading partners for tangible gains, such as reducing tariffs on electrical vehicles, she said, but “it is only a cautious optimism.”
The improvements have largely been marked by an easing of trade barriers, such as the new framework between China and Canada that includes slashing tariffs on Chinese EVs and Canadian canola oil.
Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer heads to Beijing later this month, shortly after the approval of a large new Chinese Embassy in London smoothed a point of friction between the two countries. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is expected to travel to China next month. French President Emmanuel Macron visited in early December.
Fundamental differences also remain between U.S. allies and China over issues including Beijing’s support for Russia’s Vladimir Putin following his invasion of Ukraine.
The European Commission introduced plans this week to phase out telecommunications hardware in critical European networks from “high-risk” suppliers, a move seen as targeting Chinese telecom companies including Huawei and ZTE.
Beijing has criticized those plans, saying Chinese telecommunications equipment has never endangered security and that its exclusion would cause economic harm to both sides.
China has denounced Trump’s designs on Greenland and the U.S. mission to seize Venezuelan strongman Nicolás Maduro as evidence of an American imperialistic streak that is no longer concealed by talk of a rules-based order.
The U.S. is now a “purely extractive superpower,” Xinhua, the Chinese state-news agency, said in a commentary on Tuesday.
“The world map is no longer a political chart of alliances and sovereignties, but a crude inventory of assets,” it said. “A country’s status—ally, rival or neutral—is irrelevant beside the fundamental question of its utility.”
That message has found willing audiences in developing nations long wary of American military power, where China has seen substantial growth in trade and influence in recent decades.
China saw a record $1.19 trillion trade surplus last year, a figure that reflects its central importance to the global economy and the risk of backlash it faces as it unloads cheap goods on the world.
Projects under China’s Belt and Road Initiative, a global infrastructure, energy and mining investment program, hit a record level of engagement in 2025, according to research by Christoph Nedopil, a professor at Griffith University in Brisbane, Australia.
The study found significant increases in Chinese investment in Central Asia and construction deals in Africa, Southeast Asia and Latin America.
But even as China’s ties with much of the world deepen, its ability to ease relations with Europe is relatively limited, said Zhu Feng, a professor of international studies at Nanjing University.
Beijing doesn’t expect the U.S. and its European allies to undergo a permanent split, he said. Trump’s shift on Greenland this week in Davos, where he retreated from threats of force and tariffs and moved toward a proposal that includes offers of increased Arctic security, limits the potential for a collapse of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
It also restricts China’s potential trade and diplomatic gains in Europe, said David Arase, a professor of international politics at the Hopkins-Nanjing Center.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney earlier this month announced several agreements with China after meeting Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing, saying Canada must be pragmatic when facing a rapidly rupturing global trading system. Photo: Xie Huanchi/Zuma Press
Write to Austin Ramzy at austin.ramzy@wsj.com