China’s permanent representative to the United Nations, Fu Cong, has warned the US against a trade war after Donald Trump imposed 10 per cent tariffs on all Chinese goods.
“The world is entering a very turbulent period. So as the two biggest countries, we don’t need to fight each other,” he said at a news briefing for the start of China’s month-long presidency of the UN Security Council (UNSC).
“I do hope that despite all the rhetoric that we have heard from the American politicians, we can take a constructive and I will emphasise a professional approach to our work here in the United Nations and so much is at stake,” he added.
The imposition of a 10 per cent levy on Chinese goods imported into the US “seriously violates the WTO rules”, China’s commerce ministry said in a statement on Sunday, adding that it would “resolutely defend its rights”.
Mr Fu warned that “there is no winner in a trade war and we do hope that the US should look at his own problems”. He added that China may be forced to take “counter-measures”.
“There are so many things that need the cooperation of the two countries. Targeting China is not the right way forward.”
China last held the UNSC presidency in November 2023. The Security Council has 15 members – five are permanent and 10 rotate for two-year terms. Each holds the presidency for a month and sets agendas for the organisation.
Mr Fu also rejected US claims that China is responsible for its fentanyl crisis, calling them baseless. Trump has cited fentanyl trafficking as a reason for tariffs, accusing China of not stopping the flow of chemicals to criminals.
The opioid causes around 70,000 overdose deaths in the US each year.
Mr Fu said: “China is one of the countries that has … the most stringent regulations on fentanyl. We have regulations on all fentanyl-related substances. China is the only country that puts the whole category of fentanyl-related substance under regulation.”
He said that the US should “look at the demand side of the fentanyl rather than shifting the blame onto others”.
Mr Fu stated that China’s foreign minister, Wang Yi, will chair a UN Security Council meeting on multilateralism on 18 February, describing it as a potential opportunity for dialogue and for US secretary of state Marco Rubio to engage with Chinese officials.
“We need to work together and fight the common enemies of the world, like terrorism, like climate change,” he said. “And so, targeting China is not the right way forward.”
