China has warned the US that it is ready to fight “any type” of war after hitting back against President Donald Trump’s mounting trade tariffs.
The world’s top two economies have edged closer to a trade war after Trump slapped more tariffs on all Chinese goods. China quickly retaliated imposing between 10-15% tariffs on American farm products.
The Chinese embassy in Washington, in a post on X, said: “If war is what the US wants, be it a tariff war, a trade war or any other type of war, we’re ready to fight till the end.”
It is some of the strongest rhetoric so far from China since Trump became president and comes as the county’s top leaders gathered in Beijing for the opening of the annual National People’s Congress.
On Wednesday, China’s Premier Li Qiang announced that China would again boost its defence spending by 7.2% this year and warned that “changes unseen in a century were unfolding across the world at a faster pace.” This increase was expected and matches the figure announced last year.
The Chinese embassy in Washington’s post quoted a foreign ministry statement from the previous day, which accused the US of blaming China for the influx of the drug fentanyl
“The fentanyl issue is a flimsy excuse to raise US tariffs on Chinese imports,” the foreign ministry spokesperson said.
“Intimidation does not scare us. Bullying does not work on us. Pressuring, coercion or threats are not the right way of dealing with China,” he added. Reuters report
