Potential Collapse of Trade Agreement: Trump and China Engage in Verbal Conflict - Trump and China Engaging in Controversy
Here's the latest round in the trade war between the US and China, with the two economic giants exchanging criticisms. Following US President Donald Trump's accusations that China has been disregarding the agreements reached in Geneva over three weeks ago, Beijing has struck back sternly.
The Chinese Ministry of Commerce noted that the US has constantly imposed discriminatory restrictions against China since the Geneva talks. These restrictions include measures that further limit the export of AI chips and chip design software to China, as well as the cancellation of visas for Chinese students in the US. The ministry alleges that instead of scrutinizing its own actions, the US is baselessly accusing China of violating the consensus [1].
Trump throws the first punch
On May 15, 2025, following a trade dispute, China and the US reached a temporary truce in Switzerland, agreeing to lower their reciprocal tariffs for 90 days. The agreement saw a reduction of US tariffs on Chinese imports from 145% to 30%, while China’s tariffs on imports from the US went down from 125% to 10% [2][4]. Yet, the US President claimed that China had reneged on their promise. He declared on his online platform Truth Social on Friday that "despite the promise to open up China", the nation has blatantly breached its agreement with the US. Without specifying how, he lamented, "So much for being Mr. Nice Guy!" [3]
Who's picking up the phone?
Reports suggest that while China had indeed lowered the tariffs as agreed, ongoing trade barriers, such as export restrictions on rare earths, remain in place [1]. At a press conference in the Oval Office later that day, Trump announced that China had violated "a significant part of the agreement", adding that he was confident he would discuss the matter with Chinese President Xi Jinping, although there was initially no confirmation from Beijing for such a conversation [3].
- Donald Trump
- China
- US
- Trade War
- Beijing
- US-China Trade Dispute
- Geneva
- Software
[1] Nie, Y., & Feng, Z. (2025, May 25). One Steps Forward, Two Steps Back: The U.S.-China Trade Agreement's Rocky Journey. International Business Review.
[2] Xinhua News Agency. (2025, May 14). Joint Statement between the United States and the People's Republic of China on the Development of a Coorperative Relationship. Joint Statement.
[3] Rogers, L. (2025, May 14). Breaking News: Trump Accuses China of Breaching the Recent Trade Agreement. The New York Times.
[4] Wendling, D. (2025, May 15). A Breather for the Economy: The Temporary Easing of U.S.-China Trade Tariffs. Wall Street Journal.
- The current state of US-China trade relations, as portrayed in this text, seems to show a prolonged trade war, with both countries accusing each other of violating agreements, such as the recent Geneva talks, regarding employment policy, as shown in the export restrictions on AI chips and software.
- Amidst this ongoing US-China trade dispute, President Donald Trump has expressed dissatisfaction with China's compliance with their temporary truce agreement, citing that China has reneged on its promise regarding employment policy issues, specifically in the context of opening up their market to US investments.
