Donald Trump's Tariff Blackmail Will Not Intimidate, Threaten China, Says Chinese Media

Beijing: China has declared that it will not be intimidated, threatened, or blackmailed under tariff pressure from Donald Trump , according to Chinese media. This statement follows the US President’s threat to impose an additional 50% trade duty on Beijing on Monday. The move comes after China announced a 34% retaliatory tax on American goods, escalating the trade war between the two nations.

The Chinese government mouthpiece, Global Times, described the United States' tariff tactics as measures of extreme pressure aimed at pursuing selfish interests. The editorial emphasised that China will defend its sovereignty, security, and development while upholding international fairness and justice in response to the reciprocal tariffs imposed by the Trump administration.

Global Times further stated that Beijing will not be intimidated by tariffs nor will it compromise justice, adding that pressuring and threatening China is not the right approach to dealing with the country.

China reacts after Trump threatens to impose additional 50% tariffs 

Chinese media’s reaction came after Donald Trump issued a major warning to Beijing earlier on Monday, demanding the withdrawal of the 34% retaliatory tariffs on US goods or face an additional 50% tariff on top of the existing 34% trade duty, effective April 9. Trump also threatened to terminate all planned trade talks with China and instead prioritised negotiations with other nations.

In a lengthy post on Truth Social, Trump stated, “Yesterday, China issued retaliatory tariffs of 34%, on top of their already record-setting tariffs, non-monetary tariffs, illegal subsidization of companies, and massive long-term currency manipulation, despite my warning that any country that retaliates against the US by issuing additional tariffs, above and beyond their already existing long-term tariff abuse of our nation, will be immediately met with new and substantially higher tariffs, over and above those initially set.”

He added, “Therefore, if China does not withdraw its 34% increase above their already long-term trading abuses by April 8th, 2025 (today), the United States will impose ADDITIONAL tariffs on China of 50%, effective April 9th.”

Trump further mentioned that all trade talks with China concerning their requested meetings would be terminated, and negotiations with other countries requesting trade talks would begin immediately.

Trump's tariff bomb on global trading partners

Donald Trump has remained very vocal about imposing tariffs on trading partners who have not treated United States fairly.

In February, Trump imposed an additional 10% tariff on China. Reacting to this, China issued a statement declaring its readiness for a ‘trade war’ and imposed 10% tariffs on American goods in retaliation.

Cut to April 2, Trump announced tariffs on 133 trading partners, including India, China, the EU, the UK, Japan, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Australia, and New Zealand, among others. Among these, China faced one of the highest tariff rates at 34%, to which Beijing responded aggressively by imposing an equivalent trade tax on American goods.

This escalation has further intensified the trade war, prompting Trump to issue a new threat to Beijing, warning of additional 50% tariffs and dismissing any planned trade talks.