BEIJING: China’s foreign minister has slammed tariffs as “extreme selfishness”, a pointed reference to the steep levies imposed by US President Donald Trump.
“Certain countries resort to pressure, coercion, and unjustified trade wars. This extreme selfishness only harms their credibility,” Wang Yi told his Uzbek counterpart in Kazakhstan on Friday, according to a Chinese foreign ministry statement released on Saturday.
Wang’s remarks come as the US-China trade war escalates, with US tariffs reaching 145 per cent on many Chinese goods and Beijing retaliating with 125 per cent duties on American products.
China also dismissed Trump’s recent claim that he received a call from Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Trump, speaking to Time magazine, said Xi had “called”, but did not specify when.
China’s commerce ministry and its embassy in Washington repeated Saturday there have been “no consultations or negotiations” on tariffs, calling US suggestions otherwise “misleading”.
“This trade war was initiated by the US,” the embassy said. “If the US truly wants dialogue, it must first correct its mistakes and remove all unilateral tariffs.”
Trump, meanwhile, hinted at potential trade announcements in the coming weeks, saying, “You can’t let them make a trillion dollars on us.” – AFP
