China denies violating the Geneva trade deal, countering Trump’s accusation.
China is accusing the U.S. of violating a recent trade agreement, arguing that Washington’s “harmful” restrictions and “coercion” are not the appropriate way to interact with Beijing.
Last week, U.S. President Donald Trump claimed, without providing specifics, that Beijing had “totally violated” the May 12 agreement reached in Geneva. This agreement had suspended the majority of new tariffs imposed since early April, with the goal of stabilizing relations between the world’s two largest economies.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian refuted the accusation during a regular press briefing on Tuesday, stating that China had been “responsibly and faithfully implementing the consensus,” despite what he called Washington’s “false” claims.
He stated that Beijing strongly opposes what he characterized as “harmful extreme measures,” including the recent U.S. chip export controls, a ban on electronic design automation (EDA) sales, and a commitment to revoke visas for Chinese students.
The spokesman emphasized, “Let us stress once again that pressuring and coercion are not the right way to engage China,” and urged the U.S. to cease spreading misinformation.
Last week, numerous news sources reported that the Trump administration had instructed U.S. companies to halt shipments of advanced goods to China, including chip design software and specialized chemicals. Experts cautioned that this decision would likely escalate tensions.
As part of the Geneva agreement, the U.S. had paused a planned 34% tariff increase, which was introduced on April 2, for a period of 90 days, following which Beijing took reciprocal action. Both countries also pledged to reverse the tariff increases implemented after April 8, while maintaining a base tariff of 10% on imports between them.
Beijing also committed to easing certain non-tariff barriers on U.S. goods, beginning on May 14. However, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer stated last week that China had not yet removed some of these restrictions.
Trade tensions intensified sharply on April 2 when Trump imposed broad new tariffs on imports from over 90 countries, including China, citing trade imbalances. Beijing retaliated, leading to Trump increasing U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods to 145%, while Chinese tariffs on U.S. goods reached 125%.
The U.S. has extended tariff exemptions for 164 Chinese products through August 31, according to a notice released by the U.S. trade office earlier this week. This list includes semiconductors, telecom equipment, aerospace components, and medical device components. Waivers for 14 types of solar panel equipment remain in effect.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Monday that Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping would “likely talk this week.” Lin stated that he had no information to share on the matter.
“`