Secret nuclear testing claims, military AI race: 7 US-China relations reads

South China Morning Post · Feb 16, 2026 · Collected from RSS

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We have selected seven of the most interesting and important news stories covering US-China relations from the past few weeks. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing.1. Trump faces rare pushback within his party over tariffs as polls slidePhoto: APPresident Donald Trump faced noteworthy pushback in February over his signature tariff policy in the US Congress while his popularity slipped and more lawmakers in his party appeared willing to risk his wrath.Read the full story here.2. US Treasury chief warns of China’s push for digital asset dominancePhoto: ReutersUS Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told the Senate Banking Committee in February that he “would not be surprised” if China is already looking into ways to challenge the US’ pre-eminence in digital assets, reflecting President Donald Trump’s goal to make the US the “crypto capital of the world”.Read the full story here.3. US pitches critical minerals plan to allies to halt Beijing’s dominancePhoto: ReutersAt the inaugural Critical Minerals Ministerial this February, the United States sought to rally more than 50 countries and the European Union around a landmark framework to loosen China’s control over the global critical minerals trade.