BEIJING (AP) – China signaled Sunday it would not back down in the face of the situation. 100% tariff threat President Donald Trump called on the United States to resolve differences through negotiation rather than threats. US Vice President J.D. Vance defended President Trump’s position and appeared to warn China not to respond aggressively.
“China’s position is consistent,” the Commerce Department said in a statement posted online. “We don’t want a tariff war, but we’re not afraid.”
This was China’s first official comment on President Trump’s threat to raise import taxes from China by November 1st. China’s new restrictions About the export of rare earths, which are essential to a wide range of consumer and military products.
This back-and-forth situation threatens to derail the talks between President Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping. end the truce In the trade war, new tariffs on both sides briefly exceeded 100% in April.
In response, Vance said Sunday that Trump is committed to protecting America’s economic life while increasing America’s self-sufficiency. He said the fact that China “has such control over critical U.S. supplies” defines a national emergency and therefore justifies President Trump’s move to impose harsh tariffs.
“It’s going to be a delicate battle, and a lot of it will depend on how China responds. If China responds in a very aggressive manner, I guarantee you the president of the United States has far more cards than the People’s Republic of China,” Vance said on Fox News Channel’s “Sunday Morning Futures.”
“But if they’re going to be reasonable, Donald Trump is always going to try to be a reasonable negotiator. We’re going to learn a lot in the coming weeks about whether China wants to start a trade war with the United States or whether it actually wants to be reasonable,” Vance continued. “I hope they choose the path of reason. The president of the United States is going to protect America at all costs.”
Since taking office in January, President Trump has sought concessions by raising import taxes from many U.S. trading partners. China is one of the few countries that has relied on its economic influence to not back down.
“Relying frequently on threats of higher tariffs is not the right way to get along with China,” the Commerce Department said in a post published as a series of responses by an anonymous spokesperson to four questions from unspecified media outlets.
The statement called for all concerns to be addressed through dialogue.
“If the US side stubbornly insists on its practices, China will definitely take corresponding measures to protect its legitimate rights and interests,” the post said.
In addition to 100% tariffs, President Trump threatened to impose export restrictions on what he called “critical software,” but he did not say what that meant.
Both sides accuse the other of violating the spirit of the ceasefire agreement by imposing new restrictions on trade.
Trump said in a social media post that China has become “very hostile” and is holding the world captive by restricting access to rare earth metals and magnets.
The United States has introduced several new regulations in recent weeks, including expanding the number of Chinese companies subject to U.S. export controls, according to a post from China’s Ministry of Commerce.
The ministry said that rare earths can be licensed for export if they have legitimate civilian uses, noting that the minerals also have military uses.
The new regulations include a requirement that foreign companies must obtain approval from the Chinese government to export items containing Chinese rare earths, regardless of where the products are manufactured.
China accounts for almost 70% of the world’s rare earth mining and controls about 90% of the world’s rare earth processing. Access to materials is a key issue trade negotiations between washington and beijing.
Critical minerals are used in many products, from jet engines, radar systems, and electric vehicles to consumer electronics such as laptops and phones. China’s export restrictions are not only hurting manufacturing in the United States, but also in Europe and other countries.
A statement from the Commerce Department said the United States is also ignoring China’s concerns by moving forward with new port fees for Chinese vessels that take effect on Tuesday. China announced on Friday They argued that they would impose port fees on U.S. ships in response.
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Associated Press writer Darlene Superville in Washington contributed to this report.
