Hong Kong Former Georgia Senator David Perdue had consented to become the next U.S. ambassador to China, according to President-elect Donald Trump on Thursday.
According to Trump’s post on his Truth Social platform, Perdue has lived in Singapore and Hong Kong and has worked in China and other Asian countries for a large portion of his career. As a Fortune 500 CEO with a 40-year international business career and a stint in the U.S. Senate, David brings invaluable expertise to help build our relationship with China.
He will play a key role in carrying out my plan to keep the peace in the area and foster a fruitful working relationship with the leaders of China, Trump stated.
The two biggest economies in the world, the United States and China, have what is frequently referred to as the most significant bilateral relationship in the world. Despite ongoing disagreements over trade, technology, human rights, and the status of Beijing-claimed Taiwan, President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping have been working to strengthen ties, which have just fallen to their lowest point in decades.
Trump, who will take office in January, has pledged to put tariffs of 60% or more on all imports of Chinese goods in his next term as president. He began a trade war with China during his first term. He threatened to apply an extra 10% duty on Chinese imports last week unless Beijing takes further action to halt the global flow of fentanyl precursor chemicals.
From 2015 to 2021, 74-year-old Perdue, a former management consultant, served as a Republican senator from Georgia. He was a member of the Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committees while he was a senator.
Following the 2020 general election, he lost a runoff to Democrat Jon Ossoff.
He was encouraged by Trump to run against Republican Governor Brian Kemp in 2022 after Kemp declined to assist Trump in overturning Georgia’s 2020 election results after the state voted for Biden. In the Republican primary, Perdue fell to Kemp by a margin of almost fifty points.
David has been a devoted friend and supporter, and I’m excited to collaborate with him in his new position! Trump stated on Thursday.
Perdue had a lengthy corporate career prior to joining the Senate, serving as president and CEO of Reebok, as well as CEO of Dollar General and PillowTex, a textile company based in North Carolina.
In October, Nicholas Burns, the current U.S. ambassador to China, told NBC News that the competition between the United States and China would last for the next ten years.
He stated, “It’s a really difficult relationship.” It is, however, without a doubt the most important relationship that Americans have with any other nation.
Last month, Xi informed Biden that China’s objective of a stable, healthy, and durable China-U.S. relationship remains intact and that he would collaborate with the Trump administration.
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