Donald Trump issued a sweeping executive order that requires U.S. agencies to “assess the status of United States intellectual property rights such as patents, copyrights, and trademarks” with China in order to “ensure reciprocal and balanced treatment.”

U.S. firms and research bodies have long complained that Chinese firms steal their intellectual property at the direction of the Chinese government, which also frequently forces US companies into transfers of technology, IP theft and the use of intimidation is an inherent feature of the Chinese Communist economic model.

Take Huawei, the giant Chinese telecom firm, which copied stolen technology, manuals, and know-how from Cisco Systems to build its empire. A Cisco lawsuit against Huawei was eventually settled out of court in Cisco’s favor but after years of delay.

The Trump approach appears to go well beyond that. In addition to threatening recognition of Chinese patents, the U.S. will seek to check China’s growing economic interests in strategic minerals in Latin America and Africa and strengthen US alliances with countries like India, Japan, and South Korea.

The Chinese have run roughshod over Western countries when it comes to intellectual property theft.

No more.