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China on Wednesday said it was ready to fight “any type” of war with the US in response to president Donald Trump‘s mounting trade tariffs on imports from Beijing.
The trade war between the two superpowers escalated on Tuesday as Mr Trump hiked his levies on Chinese goods to a total of 20 per cent, and China retaliated by imposing 15 per cent tariffs on American agricultural goods.
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.”
The embassy spokesperson appears to have reiterated the Chinese foreign ministry’s statement, which was issued shortly after Mr Trump’s levies took effect.
The foreign ministry claimed China will fight the US “to the bitter end” if the US “persists in waging a tariff war, a trade war, or any other kind of war”.
Mr Trump has justified the additional tariffs on Chinese goods by blaming Beijing for the fentanyl opioid crisis in the US. He claimed that a “large percentage” of these deadly substances were made in China.
China has accused the White House of “blackmail” over its tariff hike, saying it has some of the world’s toughest anti-drug policies.
Beijing’s foreign ministry lashed out, saying: “Intimidation does not scare us. Bullying does not work on us. Pressuring, coercion or threats are not the right way of dealing with China.”
“Anyone using maximum pressure on China is picking the wrong guy and miscalculating,” it added.
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