Global business leader Mathias Döpfner offers a compelling (Gideon Rachman chief foreign
affairs columnist for Financial Times) and revolutionary road map to reshape global trade
strengthen our democracy and safeguard our freedoms. Freedom is on the decline around the
world. Autocrats in Europe Asia and the Middle East are undermining our open societies human
rights and the rule of law. The Russian invasion of Ukraine was a wake-up call for the West
but the biggest threat remains China. For two generations Americans and Europeans have
believed that change will come through trade but instead of dictatorships becoming more like
Western democracies unfettered free trade has strengthened our enemies and undermined our
countries. We are caught in a trade trap faced with the decision to choose either opportunism
and submission or opposition and emancipation. In The Trade Trap one of the world's most
powerful business leaders traces the rise and costs of Western dependency on China and Russia.
And he suggests a radical new approach to free trade: The establishment of a new values-based
alliance of democracies. Membership is based on the adherence to three very simple criteria:
the rule of law human rights and sustainability targets. Countries that comply with these
criteria can engage in tariff-free trade with others. Those who don't will pay prohibitive
tariffs. Sharing the author's encounters with major global figures including Vladimir Putin
Recep Tayyip Erdogan George W. Bush Angela Merkel Jack Ma and more The Trade Trap offers
personal insight into the dangerous consequences of doing business with autocrats along with a
bold proposal for a values-based trade policy.
