China warned United States President Donald Trump “to correct its wrongdoings” following the latter recently imposed a 10 % duty on Chinese imports. The Chinese Foreign Ministry in a statement said, “China calls on the United States to correct its wrongdoings, maintain the hard-won positive dynamics in the counter-narcotics cooperation, and promote a steady, sound and sustainable development of China-US relationship.” It however did not mention any specific retaliatory measures.
China had argued that by imposing these tariffs, the US violates the World Trade Organisation rules and has promised to bring a case before the body that governs global commerce. The Ministry of Public Security on Sunday made near identical charges and the Commerce Ministry also issued a closely worded statement.
This development comes days following, Trump in a big move imposed 25 % tariffs on Canada and Mexico and 10 % on China.
Trump has accused China of enabling fentanyl production, which is then turned into pills in Mexico and smuggled into the United States, contributing to approximately 70,000 overdose deaths annually. Responding to this accusation, China said that the US should take responsibility for its problems rather than “threaten other nations with arbitrary tariff hikes,” according to a statement from the Foreign Ministry. “The US needs to address its fentanyl crisis in an objective and rational manner… China is one of the toughest countries on counter-narcotics, both in policy and enforcement.”
The Ministry of Public Security also pointed out that the US has not reported any fentanyl precursor seizures from China since Beijing started legal action against the issue. Trump has criticised China’s massive trade deficit with the US, which reached nearly $1 trillion last year. Tariffs on Chinese goods would raise prices for US consumers, forcing them to bear much of the cost for everything from toys to clothing. China’s critical export market could be affected if US consumers shift towards “buying American.”
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