After China says "not afraid" of making trade war with us, Trump responds

Donald Trump has said repeatedly that he is preparing to meet Xi Jinping at the Osaka, Japan summit at the end of June, but China has not confirmed it.

Washington / Beijing:

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday defended the use of tariffs as part of his trade strategy while China promised a tough answer if the United States insists on escalating trade tensions in the context of trade talks. course.

"Tariffs are a great bargaining tool," Trump tweeted a day after saying he was ready to impose another round of punitive tariffs on China.

On Monday, the Republican president said he would further increase tariffs on Chinese imports if he can not make progress in trade talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the G20 summit later this month.

Trump said on several occasions that he was preparing to meet Xi at the Osaka summit in Japan at the end of June, but China has not confirmed it.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang would not again confirm a meeting of Xi-Trump at the G20, saying that information would be released once it was available for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Foreign.

"China does not want to wage a trade war, but we are not afraid to wage a trade war," he said, adding that China's door was open to negotiations based on equality.

"If the United States only wants to exacerbate trade frictions, we will respond with determination and we will fight to the end."

Last week, Trump said he would decide after the G20, the leaders' meeting of the world's largest economies, to implement a Threat of imposing tariffs on an additional $ 300 billion of Chinese products.

Trump is backed by his self-proclaimed victory after a long battle with Mexico after he threatened to impose tariffs unless the Mexican authorities do more to stem the flow of migrants to their common border.

The two battles were between the Trump administration and its two main trading partners.

Tensions between Washington and Beijing erupted in May after the Trump administration accused China of disavowing its promises of structural economic change during months of trade talks.

The United States is looking for radical changes, including the end of forced technology transfers and theft of US trade secrets. It also wants restrictions on subsidies to Chinese state enterprises and better access for US companies to Chinese markets.

On May 10, Trump raised tariffs on Chinese goods worth $ 200 billion to 25 percent and took action to collect duties on additional Chinese imports worth $ 300 billion. . Beijing responded by raising tariffs on a revised US $ 60 billion list of US goods.

US Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross on Tuesday downplayed the likelihood of resolving the dispute at the G20 summit, saying it would not be "a place where everyone makes a definitive agreement."

"At the G20, it will be at best the sort of agreement on the way forward, but it will certainly not be a final deal," Ross told CNBC.

Terry Branstad, the US ambassador to China, is scheduled to meet US Vice President Mike Pence in Washington later Tuesday as part of the ongoing negotiations.

The US government has also angered China by putting Huawei Technologies Co Ltd, the world's largest manufacturer of telecommunications equipment, on a blacklist that effectively prohibits US companies from doing business with Chinese companies.