Wang Wentao talked with the ASEAN rotating chairman and Malaysia's Minister of Trade and Industry on dealing with the so-called "reciprocal tariff" of the United States.

According to the message on the Ministry of Commerce website, on April 9, Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao held a video talk with Zafrou, the minister of International Trade and Industry of Malaysia, which is the rotating chairman of ASEAN. The two parties had in-depth and sincere exchanges of opinions around strengthening China-Malaysia and China-ASEAN economic and trade cooperation and jointly responding to so-called "reciprocal tariffs" imposed by the US.

Wang Wentao said that the so-called "reciprocal tariff" by the US side ignored the balanced results achieved through years of multilateral trade negotiations and also ignored the fact that the US side has long benefited greatly from international trade. It seriously harmed the legitimate rights and interests of all parties including China and ASEAN countries, and was a typical unilateral hegemonic practice. The US approach not only harmed its own interests but also jeopardized global economic development and the stability of industrial chains and supply chains, severely damaging the international trade system. In response, China firmly opposed it and took decisive measures to counteract it. If the US side insisted on going its own way, China would definitely see it through to the end.

Wang Wentao said that China was willing to work together with trading partners including ASEAN to strengthen communication and coordination, resolve each other's concerns through equal dialogue and consultation based on mutual respect, and jointly safeguard the multilateral trading system.

Zafrou said that the Ministry of International Trade and Industry of Malaysia had issued a statement, believing that the relevant policies of the US government were inconsistent with the principles of free and fair trade stipulated by the World Trade Organization. The Malaysian side fully respected China's position and was willing to jointly support multilateralism and global trade development. It would consult with ASEAN countries on the series of measures of the US "reciprocal tariff" and jointly respond to them.

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7491480039834403337/

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