China blames US for trade dispute, says it won’t back down

Associated Press

BEIJING

China issued a report Sunday blaming the U.S. for the countries’ trade dispute and said it won’t back down on “major issues of principle,” but offered no clarification about what additional steps it might take to up the ante.

The report from the Cabinet spokesman’s office said China has kept its word throughout 11 rounds of talks and will honor its commitments if a trade agreement is reached. It accused the U.S. of backtracking three times over the course of the talks by introducing new tariffs and other conditions beyond what was agreed on.

“But the more the U.S. government is offered, the more it wants,” it said, accusing America’s negotiators of “resorting to intimidation and coercion.”

“A country’s sovereignty and dignity must be respected, and any agreement reached by the two sides must be based on equality and mutual benefit,” the report said.

The report, delivered at a Sunday morning news conference, appears to be a bid to shore up China’s arguments and justify its position in the face of what looks to be a protracted dispute. Over recent days, China has been mobilizing its representatives abroad to sell its position with foreign audiences, while the domestic propaganda apparatus has been working overtime to convince the public of the righteousness of the government’s stance.

Linda Lim, a professor at Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan, said the report does not represent an escalation on China’s part, but rather reiterates the government’s position in a clear and measured way that leaves the door open for negotiations.

The U.S. has accused China of stealing trade secrets and forced technology transfers. The Trump administration has imposed 25 percent tariffs on $250 billion in Chinese imports and is planning to tax the $300 billion in imports that have so far been spared.