By South China Morning Post | Created at 2025-02-02 04:11:27 | Updated at 2025-02-02 06:59:04
3 hours ago
China will file a claim with the WTO and take necessary countermeasures to safeguard its interests, the Ministry of Commerce said on Sunday after the US announced it would impose 10 per cent tariffs on goods from China.
“The unilateral tariff hikes by the US seriously violate [World Trade Organization] rules,” the ministry said, adding that the move “not only fails to address America’s own issues” but also “disrupts normal China-US economic and trade cooperation”.
The statement followed US President Donald Trump’s decision on Saturday to sign an executive order imposing a 10 per cent tariff on Chinese imports in response to what he said was the failure of Chinese officials to stem the flow of precursor chemicals for fentanyl into the United States.
“We urge the US to take an objective and rational approach to its domestic issues, such as fentanyl, rather than resorting to tariff threats against other countries,” the ministry said.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reaffirmed China’s efforts to control the illegal production of fentanyl, saying the country was “one of the world’s strictest and most thorough enforcers of anti-narcotics policies”.
“The fentanyl crisis is a problem of the United States, and out of humanitarian concern, China has supported US efforts to tackle the issue,” the foreign ministry said.
