Trump accuses China of ‘violating’ tariff truce

China rejects Trump's claims

U.S. President Donald Trump, on Friday, May 30, 2025, accused China of violating a recently established tariff truce, just two weeks after Washington and Beijing agreed to ease reciprocal tariffs following negotiations in Geneva.

In response, China issued a counterstatement, accusing the U.S. of engaging in discriminatory practices.

Speaking on Friday, Trump claimed that China had “totally violated its agreement with us,” although he offered no specifics.

Later, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer clarified the accusation, saying that China had failed to eliminate non-tariff trade barriers as had been agreed under the Geneva deal.

China’s reply did not directly address the U.S. allegations.

Instead, it called on Washington to end what it described as “discriminatory restrictions against China.”

The back-and-forth statements from both countries have reignited fears that trade tensions between the world’s two largest economies could escalate again, despite the recent efforts toward de-escalation.

In a post on his social media platform Truth Social, Trump claimed that the tariffs imposed during his administration had severely hurt the Chinese economy.

He said that he had acted quickly to negotiate a deal to prevent what he described as a worsening crisis for China.

“Everybody was happy! That is the good news!” he wrote.

“The bad news is that China, perhaps not surprisingly to some, HAS TOTALLY VIOLATED ITS AGREEMENT WITH US. So much for being Mr. NICE GUY!”

Although Trump didn’t elaborate, Greer provided more detail in an interview with CNBC.

He stated that while both sides had agreed to remove certain tariffs, China had failed to lift other retaliatory trade measures, including non-tariff barriers.

These included blacklisting specific U.S. firms.

It also included placing restrictions on exports of rare earth magnets, materials crucial for manufacturing vehicles, aircraft, and semiconductors.

Greer emphasized that the U.S. had fully honored its commitments and that American officials were closely monitoring China’s actions.

“They removed the tariff like we did but some of the countermeasures they’ve slowed on,” he said, describing China’s delayed compliance as “completely unacceptable.”

He added that the U.S. was “very concerned” about the slow progress and stressed that it needed to be addressed immediately.

In its rebuttal, the Chinese government urged the United States to correct its “erroneous actions” and to stop the “discriminatory restrictions against China.”

Beijing called for both nations to work together to uphold the consensus reached during the high-level discussions in Geneva.

A spokesperson from China’s embassy in Washington highlighted the country’s ongoing concerns about the U.S.’s use of export control measures, particularly in the semiconductor industry.

The U.S. already has tight restrictions on technology exports to China.

On Wednesday, it expanded these by suspending additional sales of semiconductor technologies, along with exports of related chemicals and machinery.

Pengyu Liu, a Chinese embassy official, noted that communication had continued between the two nations since the May 11 talks in Geneva, which had ended on a positive note.

However, the optimism appears to be fading.

On Thursday, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Fox News that the trade discussions with China had become “a bit stalled.”

He pointed to the complexity and scope of the negotiations.

This suggested that progress would likely require direct involvement from the leadership of both countries.

Complicating matters further, Trump’s broader trade policies have come under scrutiny.

On Wednesday, a court ruled that the former president had exceeded his legal authority with his global tariff actions.

The White House has since appealed the decision, temporarily reinstating those tariffs.

In another move likely to provoke Beijing, the U.S. government also began taking steps this week to revoke visas for Chinese students studying in the United States.

There are currently an estimated 280,000 Chinese students in the U.S.

The Geneva agreement initially aimed to reduce tensions by canceling some tariffs and pausing others for a 90-day period.

But with both sides now accusing each other of violating the terms, the fragile trade truce appears to be on shaky ground.

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