“According to Julianne Smith of the German Marshall Fund of the United States: ‘The Chinese have started brazenly claiming that it is China, not the United States, that shares more values with Europe. [They] also frequently remind European audiences that unlike the United States, China believes in climate change and multilateralism, a message that is especially powerful in a place like Germany.’
“Now consider this: At a moment when the U.S. State Department is in free fall, China is upping its game…”