Key points
- Wang labels unilateral sanctions as bullying
- Trump administration imposed 10pc tariffs on China
- Beijing slapped levies on some US goods
ISLAMABAD: China’s top diplomat, Wang Yi, said the country will respond to any further unilateral US sanctions, naming such moves “bullying” in his first public comments since US President Donald Trump started a new trade conflict.
“If the US is not willing, if it is bent on suppressing and containing China, then we have no choice but to play along to the end,” Foreign Minister Wang Yi told officials at the Munich Security Conference on Friday. “We will resolutely respond to unilateral bullying practices of the US,” according to Bloomberg.
The Trump administration imposed 10 per cent tariffs on China after assuming power for the second term.
Beijing retaliated by targeting a few American companies, slapping levies on some US goods, and placing export controls on some important metals.
Building trust
Still, Wang tried to take a longer view of relations with America, showing confidence that Beijing and Washington will remain engaged long into the future. “We need to strengthen exchanges to boost understanding and build trust,” he said.
Chinese authorities are attempting to maintain a balance between taking action that could crimp its economy and demonstrating that it has the ability to respond to US moves.
At the same time, they are looking to bolster growth, with domestic demand remaining weak and exports now under the radar.
However, the US-China trade fight falls in a larger context. Trump’s 10 per cent duties increase the tension, but they are a fraction of the 60 per cent rate the US president had talked about during his reelection campaign — or the 25 per cent across-the-board tariffs he has implemented on steel and aluminium imports.
Trump praises Xi
Trump, during his first administration, praised President Xi Jinping — until the pandemic prompted him to blame China. Despite elevating several China hawks to senior positions in his new administration, the president’s focus abroad so far has been on closer neighbours, including Panama and Greenland.
But days before his January 20 inauguration, Trump and Xi had a call in which they talked about trade, TikTok, and fentanyl, in addition to Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas war.
“We have a very good personal relationship,” Trump told Fox News in an interview taped last week.
Wang spoke in Germany at a conference focused on global security. He fended off a question on whether China would halt Russian gas purchases to compel the Kremlin in its war on Ukraine.
Purchasing Russia’s gas
“If China does not buy gas from Russia, which country can provide so much gas as to meet the needs of the Chinese people? It’s not possible,” he said.
The minister reassured China’s call for peace talks that include all parties, including Europe, in the conflict.
However, Beijing has largely ignored the main issues in the war, such as Ukraine’s demand that Russia abandon the territory it annexed in 2014.
“China would love to see all efforts conducive to peace, including over the past couple of days, the US has reached a common understanding with Russia,” Wang said.
In Xi’s call with Russian President Vladimir Putin last month, both leaders said they are ready for dialogue with Trump on the war in Ukraine “if appropriate signals come from Washington”. Trump has said that he wants Xi’s help in quickly ending the conflict.
