U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s latest tit-for-tat showdown has both countries claiming the ball is now in the other’s court, with the clock ticking toward another escalation in import tariffs.
After Trump signaled openness to doing a deal with Beijing, U.S. Vice President JD Vance on Sunday declared the outcome would "depend on how the Chinese respond.” Hours later, China’s Foreign Ministry made clear Beijing would take its cues from Washington’s next steps, after having already unleashed what it saw as retaliatory actions.
"If the U.S. continues on its wrong course, China will firmly take necessary measures to safeguard its legitimate rights and interests,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said at a regular briefing in Beijing. Chinese authorities haven’t yet retaliated to Trump’s threat to impose 100% tariffs over their latest rare earth curbs, while saying there could be "exemptions” in order to facilitate trade.
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