Instead of adhering to existing norms, China gamed the organization, successfully pursuing a mercantilist policy in a supposedly free-trade body. Internationally, China stole intellectual property; forced technology transfers from, and discriminated against, foreign investors and businesses; engaged in corrupt practices and “debt diplomacy” through instruments such as the “Belt and Road Initiative”; and continued managing its domestic economy in statist, authoritarian ways. America was the primary target of these “structural” aspects of China’s policy, but so were Europe, Japan, and virtually
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