An editorial titled “Washington Should Not Be Surprised by China’s Response,” published by the official Global Times newspaper, attributes the renewed tensions between the world’s two largest economies to the “failure to fulfill promises” by the United States and its “unilateral conduct.”
The text holds the U.S. accountable for “overestimating its coercive power” and “underestimating China’s response capability,” asserting that threats of new tariffs have “destabilized global markets and supply chains.”
According to the newspaper, Beijing’s countermeasures represent “a defense of its legitimate rights and international justice.”
The editorial further criticizes U.S. trade policy for showing a “lack of strategic vision” and warns that the “big stick” wielded by Washington is “nothing but a paper tiger” to the Chinese public—a common phrase in the country’s political rhetoric.
Another official newspaper, the China Daily, published a commentary by academic Zheng Jueshi, who accuses the U.S. of employing the “law of the jungle” in international relations, treating allies, partners, and rivals as “part of its political menu.”
In his opinion, Washington “sacrifices the interests of other countries” to maintain its hegemony, while Beijing “advocates for a fairer system of governance.”
The criticisms come a day after U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated in New York that China “will be the most affected” if it continues to adopt “disappointing and coercive” policies, referencing Beijing’s restrictions on the export of rare earths, minerals essential to the tech and defense industries.
The U.S. official stated these actions highlight “the risk of relying on an unreliable partner” and argued that the U.S. and its allies should “diversify supply chains.”
Bessent also announced the setting of minimum prices in various industries and the strengthening of U.S. “industrial policy” to reduce dependence on the Chinese market.
Trade tensions between the two countries have intensified in recent weeks following Beijing’s decision to impose sanctions on U.S. subsidiaries of South Korea’s Hanwha Ocean and to apply new tariffs on U.S.-flagged ships.
Washington responded with similar measures and threatened to impose 100% tariffs on all Chinese products starting November 1.
The current impasse recalls earlier tariff confrontations from the beginning of the year, when both governments accused each other of distorting global trade through export controls on technologies and strategic raw materials.
Although neither the Global Times nor the China Daily directly mention Bessent, the editorials reiterate the usual message from Chinese authorities following U.S. criticism, insisting on the need for “equality and mutual respect” in bilateral negotiations.
