BEIJING: China called President Donald Trump's latest US tariffs on Chinese goods hypocritical on Sunday and defended its curbs on exports of rare earths, but stopped short of imposing new levies on US products.
The commerce ministry said in a statement its export controls on rare-earth elements - which Trump on Friday called "surprising" and "very hostile" - followed a series of US measures since bilateral trade talks in Madrid last month.
Beijing cited the addition of Chinese companies to a US trade blacklist and Washington's imposition of port fees on Chinese vessels as examples.
"These actions have severely harmed China's interests and undermined the atmosphere for bilateral economic and trade talks. China firmly opposes them," the ministry said.
Beijing stopped short of explicitly linking these US actions to its curbs on exports of critical minerals, stating that its curbs were motivated by concerns about the military applications of these metals at a time of "frequent military conflict."
Tensions flare again
A few months ago, Beijing and Washington agreed on an uneasy truce in their tit-for-tat trade war that started earlier this year and threw bilateral trade into serious jeopardy.
But tensions have boiled up again in recent days.
China said on Friday that it would impose "special port fees" on ships operated by and built in the US, calling it a "defensive action."
It aimed at the US's own port fees charged on Chinese ships, claiming they "severely harmed China's interests."
Washington announced those fees in April as part of an effort to revive American shipbuilding after a decades-long decline that has seen China and other Asian nations come to dominate the industry.
