China says will never surrender to foreign pressure

By Fuat Kabakci

BEIJING (AA) - China will not bow to outside pressure with the renewal of U.S tariffs on Chinese imports, a Beijing foreign ministry spokesman said Monday.

"We have many times said that increasing tariffs will not solve any problems," said Geng Shuang. "China will never surrender to foreign pressure."

In a statement, Shuang underlined his country’s determination and ability to protect its legal interests but said he hoped China would meet the U.S in the middle and resolve Beijing's reasonable concerns on the basis of mutual respect and equality.

The U.S moved Friday to hike tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese imports to 25% from 10% as China vowed to take "necessary countermeasures."

It is unclear what measures China is weighing in retaliation, but Trump has said he may impose a new 25% levy on $325 billion worth of Chinese goods, which would effectively place the penalty on all goods imported from China.

The U.S. had a trade deficit with China estimated at $378.6 billion in 2018 by the U.S. Trade Representative, a fact Trump has repeatedly and frequently bemoaned.

*Writing by Dilara Hamit from Ankara