Technology & Innovation — January 2, 2011

U.S. Abandons Unilateral Free Trade

The United States will start to imitate the industrial and strategic trade policies of countries like China, Japan, Korea, Germany, and France. It will also begin to withdraw its overseas troops.

Clyde Prestowitz

Over the next year, two historic trends will emerge. The long eroding competitiveness of the U.S. economy will become fully apparent as unemployment remains high and the U.S. trade deficit continues to rise. In response, the United States will begin to abandon its longtime policy of unilateral free trade and will start to imitate the industrial and strategic trade policies of countries like China, Japan, Korea, Germany, and France.

The second trend will be the beginning of a withdrawal of American military forces from overseas bases and a major reduction of the size of the U.S. military establishment. The United States has gotten to the point at which it simply can no longer afford to be the world’s sole policeman.

— Clyde Prestowitz, President of the Economic Strategy Institute

Image courtesy of Flickr user KB35.

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