No winners in tariff war, coercion and pressure won’t achieve anything: China

Beijing: Reacting strongly to the US threat of facing higher tariffs if China continues to purchase Russian oil, Beijing on Wednesday said that there are no winners in a tariff war, and coercion and pressure will not solve problems.

“China will take reasonable energy security measures based on its national interests. There are no winners in a tariff war, and coercion and pressure will not solve problems. China will firmly safeguard its sovereignty, security, and development interests,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said during a regular media briefing.

China’s reaction came around the same time US President Donald Trump threatened on Wednesday to impose a 25 per cent tariff on India’s exports, starting Friday.

“India will be paying a tariff of 25 per cent” starting on August 1, Trump posted on Truth Social. He said that India would also face an additional tariff penalty for buying Russian energy.

Trump had set the penalty, known as secondary tariffs, across the board at 100 per cent for all who are buying Russian energy if Moscow did not reach a ceasefire with Ukraine.

He shortened the deadline for that to 10 days from Tuesday, setting it at August 7.

The threat to India could be a negotiating tactic to force New Delhi to reach an agreement after Trump and his officials, like Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, had spoken optimistically that India would be among the first to make a deal.

India was among the first countries to start trade negotiations with Washington on tariffs, and Trump had repeatedly said that an agreement was imminent, most recently last week.

Trump said in his post: “Remember, while India is our friend, we have, over the years, done relatively little business with them because their Tariffs are far too high, among the highest in the World”.

He accused India of having “the most strenuous and obnoxious non-monetary Trade Barriers of any Country”.

He added: “They have always bought a vast majority of their military equipment from Russia, and are Russia’s largest buyer of ENERGY, along with China, at a time when everyone wants Russia to STOP THE KILLING IN UKRAINE”.

“ALL THINGS NOT GOOD! INDIA WILL THEREFORE BE PAYING A TARIFF OF 25%, PLUS A PENALTY FOR THE ABOVE, STARTING ON AUGUST FIRST,” he wrote.

IANS