China to defend rights in face of Trump threats
A high-ranking Chinese trade official says the country will defend its rights under the World Trade Organization’s tariff regulations if US President-elect Donald Trump follows through with threats made during his campaign to levy punitive duties on China-made goods.
China’s deputy international trade representative Zhang Xiangchen made the announcement on Wednesday following a two-day technical meeting between US and Chinese trade officials in Washington.
“I think after Mr. Trump takes office, he will be reminded that the United States should honor its obligations as a member of the World Trade Organization…And as a member of the WTO, China also has the right to ensure its rights as a WTO member,” he said.
While campaigning, Trump said that China was “killing" the US on trade, adding that he would take measures to reduce the large US goods trade deficit with Beijing.
Among the measures he announced were labeling China as a currency manipulator and levying duties of up to 45 percent on Chinese goods.
Zhang stressed that a large number of academics, business figures and government officials have reached consensus that China is not a currency manipulator.
He noted that cooperation between the two countries should continue as the shared economic interests between both parties largely outweigh their differences.
Relations between the two economic heavyweights have generally been stable, though there have been some periods of open conflict, most notably during the Korean War and the Vietnam War.
Tensions between them have recently escalated, however, in the wake of Washington’s increased military involvement in Asia as part of President Barack Obama’s “pivot” to the region. Obama has said no region is more important to Washington’s long-term interests than Asia. Political observers believe the “pivot” policy was aimed at checking China’s rise in Asia.
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