The TikTok debacle shows the doomed approach the UK and US are taking with China

Shunning Chinese 'wolf warrior' diplomats and banning Chinese high tech companies won’t help the two Western countries win this new cold war, writes Ahmed Aboudouh

Donald Trump, left, and Xi Jinping have had a topsy-turvy relationship (AFP via Getty Images)

In an old Spanish film, a raging bull dominates a vast tent. The bull is mighty and wild and is smashing everything and everyone who dares to come close.

One of the actors came up with a strategy to dominate this angry beast. He said: “The only way to control it is to bring the canvas down on its head”, adding that “the tent’s poles should instantly be covered in red”.

Every time this brutal animal horns a pole, it was a step forward in what became a collective strategy by the actors to bring their seething and unruly colleague down.