- China denied Trump’s claims of active tariff negotiations, calling them baseless and lacking any real progress.
- Beijing said talks can only happen if the U.S. cancels all unilateral tariffs and treats China as an equal partner.
- Despite high tariffs on both sides, Trump insists relations with China will improve and that they’ll “work together happily.”
So, things got a little messy on Thursday after China shot down President Trump’s recent claims that trade talks between the U.S. and China were making headway. According to Beijing, no such discussions are happening—and any suggestion otherwise is about as solid as, well, chasing wind.
Earlier this week, Trump told reporters that the tariffs on Chinese imports—currently set at a sky-high 145%—would “come down substantially.” Sounds like progress, right? Not so fast, said China’s Ministry of Commerce.
“We’re open to talking, sure,” said spokesperson He Yadong, “but this has to be based on mutual respect. No one-sided deals.” He went on to say any claims about actual negotiation progress were “as groundless as trying to catch the wind,” making it clear that no real talks are underway.
While Trump described the situation as “active,” his Treasury Secretary gave a more muted take—basically, there’s no formal negotiation in place. Still, Trump’s been telling the press he’s ready to “be nice” to China, insisting that the U.S. and China would end up “working together happily.” Hmm.
In the meantime, tariffs are very much in place. The U.S. slapped 145% duties on Chinese imports, and Beijing hit back hard with 125% tariffs of its own. Unlike other countries that got a 90-day delay to come to the table, China didn’t get any pause. Instead, it upped its own tariffs, filed complaints with the WTO, and cut exports of key materials like rare earths. Not exactly a peace offering.
And China isn’t budging unless the U.S. takes a big step first. “If they’re serious about fixing this, they need to cancel all these unilateral tariffs,” said He. “Then we can talk.”
So while Trump talks about taking it easy on Xi Jinping and finding common ground, China’s drawing a pretty firm line in the sand.
And right now? That happy ending both sides keep hinting at still feels pretty far off.
