China's Wang Yi vows to stand firm, urges nations to resist 'bully' Trump

By Josh Xiao

  China’s top diplomat warned countries against caving into US tariff threats, as the Trump administration hints at the possible use of new trade tools to pressure Beijing. 

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said appeasement will only embolden the “bully” at a Brics meeting, rallying the group of emerging-market nations to fight back against US levies. The stern remarks show China intends to resist pressure to enter trade talks even as US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent suggests Washington could ban certain exports to China to gain leverage. 

 

“The US, which has long benefited enormously from free trade, is now going so far as to use tariffs as a bargaining chip to demand exorbitant prices from all countries,” Wang said in Brazil on Monday. “If one chooses to remain silent, compromise and cower, it will only make the bully want to push his luck more.”

 

Wang’s call to the international community underscores China’s attempt to portray itself as the bastion of free trade as US tariffs threaten to reshape commerce globally. Beijing has repeatedly urged allies to defend multilateralism and told other governments not to cut deals with the US president at China’s expense. 

 

His comments come as Washington insists the ball is in Beijing’s court to de-escalate. Bessent said Monday that the US has an “escalation ladder” and claimed it’s “anxious not to have to use it,” reflecting the administration’s growing urgency to bring China to the negotiating table. 

 

“That the Chinese are exempting all these goods tells me that they want a de-escalation,” he said in an interview with CNBC, citing Beijing’s reported move to suspend 125 per cent tariffs on US imports including medical equipment, plane leases and at least eight semiconductor-related products. 

 

“What we haven’t done is escalate by embargoing those goods or putting a trade ban on those goods, which we could if we needed to, to gain more leverage,” Bessent added.

 

China has repeatedly denied being engaged in trade talks with the US. Instead, Beijing has demanded mutual respect and a cancellation of all tariffs before any negotiations. 

 

Chinese officials on Monday vowed to provide more support for exporters affected by US tariffs, showing greater urgency to shore up a sector that contributed to nearly a third of the economy’s growth last year.