Taiwan, TAI — China attacked the United States on Monday over actions it claimed hurt Chinese interests, including policies on AI chip exports, halting the supply of chip design tools to China, and intended cancellation of Chinese student visas.
The Commerce Ministry stated in a statement, “these practices seriously violate the consensus” acquired during trade negotiations in Geneva last month.
That alluded to a joint statement between China and the United States in which they agreed to cut their enormous recent tariffs, therefore enabling resumed trade between the two most powerful countries.
Last month’s de-escalation in President Donald Trump’s trade conflicts did nothing to address fundamental divides between Beijing and Washington, and Monday’s comment demonstrated how readily such accords may cause more upheaval.
The accord spans ninety days, allowing American and Chinese negotiators time to arrive to a more significant compromise. But the stop also leaves tariffs higher than they were last month when Trump began escalating them. Companies and investors also have to deal with uncertainties on the longevity of the truce.
The U.S. agreed to cut the 145% tax Trump levied last month to 30%, according U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer. China consented to cut the tariff rate on American imports from 125% to 10%.
Declaring in a social media post that China had violated a deal with the United States, Trump provoked more debate Friday by stating he would no longer be friendly with the nation on trade.
Still claiming China had broken the agreement, Trump said in the Oval Office hours later that he will be speaking with Chinese President Xi Jinping and “hopefully we’ll work that out.”
“The bad news is that China, perhaps not surprisingly to some, HAS TOTALLY VIOLATED THEIR AGREEMENT WITH US,” Trump wrote. So much for Mr. NICE GUY!
Last week, the Trump administration also escalated the confrontation with China by declaring that it will begin to revoke visas for Chinese students enrolled in the United States.
More than 275,000 Chinese students call American universities home.
Both nations are racing to create cutting-edge technology including artificial intelligence; Washington wants to restrict China’s access to the most sophisticated computer chips. China is also trying to replace the United States as the top power in Asia-Pacific by acquiring authority over close U.S. ally and top technological powerhouse Taiwan.
