【By Observer News, Shao Yun】
As the outside world expects the third round of Sino-US trade negotiations to take place, the Trump administration has "raised a new issue" by bringing up secondary tariffs against Russia and its trading partners.
According to China Central Television news on July 14, US President Trump said that if a deal cannot be reached within 50 days to end the Ukraine-Russia conflict, the US will impose a 100% tariff on Russia. With reports that Ukraine and Russia are set to hold direct talks again this week, US Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker on the 22nd made an insulting comment, claiming that China wants to "hold back" the US with the Ukraine-Russia conflict.
Whitaker made these remarks during an interview with Fox Business Channel. He claimed that China "wants the US and its allies to be occupied with this war, so we can't focus on other strategic challenges."
He further incited by saying that China must be "condemned" for "funding" the Ukraine-Russia conflict, and threatened that the US's secondary tariffs would have a "significant" impact on countries such as China, India, and Brazil that purchase Russian oil.
Whitaker being interviewed, screenshot from Fox Business Channel program
Before making these fallacies, US President Trump expressed dissatisfaction with the ongoing Ukraine-Russia conflict during his meeting with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in the White House Oval Office on Monday last week (14th). He said that day that if Russia did not reach a peace agreement with Ukraine within 50 days, the US would impose economic sanctions on Russia, and implement so-called "secondary tariffs" on buyers of Russian oil, at a rate of 100%.
At that time, Whitaker told American media that this measure targeted countries such as India and China, and stated that the US expected it to have a "huge impact" on the Russian economy. Reuters cited data from the KSE Institute under Kyiv School of Economics (KSE) on the 21st, which indicated that from January to May this year, China purchased nearly one-third of Russian oil, while India and Turkey bought approximately one-quarter and one-tenth respectively.
However, the US has not yet introduced any specific details. Bloomberg pointed out on the 22nd that due to the technical complexity of implementing secondary tariffs, despite previous statements by Trump about increasing economic pressure on Russia, it has never been implemented.
Whitaker's latest remarks come ahead of the next round of direct negotiations between Ukraine and Russia. According to RIA Novosti, sources revealed that this negotiation may take place in Istanbul, Turkey, from the 24th to the 25th.
However, both Ukraine and Russia are not optimistic about the prospects of the negotiations. Ukraine has consistently advocated that the previous two rounds of direct negotiations were at too low a level, lacking sufficient political influence to end the conflict completely; Russian President's Press Secretary Peskov stated on the 22nd that there was "no reason to expect" any "miraculous breakthroughs" from the upcoming negotiations.
Meanwhile, Bloomberg noted that the Trump administration's latest threat of secondary tariffs coincides with the "critical moment" of the possible third round of Sino-US trade negotiations. According to the "Joint Statement on Sino-US Geneva Economic and Trade Talks" released on May 14, China and the US will suspend the implementation of some tariffs for 90 days. This means that this measure will expire on August 12, so the outside world generally sees this as the so-called "last deadline for tariff truce" between China and the US.
This month on the 21st, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen gave an interview to the American Consumer News and Business Channel (CNBC), stating that Sino-US trade negotiations were "progressing smoothly," but also boasted that the Trump administration was not in a hurry to reach a trade agreement with China, claiming that they could now "start discussing other matters." "Unfortunately, China is a major buyer of sanctioned Iranian oil and Russian oil. Therefore, we can start discussing this."
The South China Morning Post commented that Yellen's statement indicates that the focus of Sino-US negotiations is shifting from tariffs to geopolitical issues and Sino-Russian and Sino-Iranian relations. However, experts believe that this kind of "playing cards out of thin air" approach by the US is unlikely to work on China. According to reports, Professor Xin Qiang from Fudan University stated that China is unlikely to allow the US to "insert" issues outside of tariffs into the negotiations, saying that "China may insist that trade negotiations must focus on trade and should not be 'hijacked' by other issues."
On the 21st, Reuters columnist Hugo Dixon also published an article pointing out that Trump's imposition of secondary tariffs is full of risks, not only will China not accept it, but it will also further increase domestic inflation in the US. CNN stated that the volume of transactions involved in secondary tariffs is "huge," and Trump's strong card might successfully reduce Russian oil supply, but oil prices would rise significantly, and Trump "may not be ready to bear" this consequence.
The US-based think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) analyzed that once secondary tariffs are implemented, the US may be forced to suspend its annual $87 billion trade with India, which would cause a heavy blow to the US economy and geopolitical relations. "Recognizing the prospect of mutual loss, buyers like India may expose the US's bluff," CSIS said, "in this case, Trump's approach would backfire and fail to exert substantial pressure on Russia."
Regarding Yellen's statement that the new round of Sino-US negotiations may discuss the issue of China purchasing oil from Russia and Iran, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Guo Jia Kun stated on the 22nd at a regular press conference that China's position on tariff issues has always been consistent and clear. The Chinese side hopes that the US will work with China to implement the important consensus reached in the call between the two heads of state, play the role of the Sino-US economic and trade consultation mechanism, and promote the stable, healthy, and sustainable development of Sino-US relations through dialogue and communication to enhance consensus, reduce misunderstandings, and strengthen cooperation.
Regarding the Ukraine-Russia conflict, the Chinese Foreign Ministry has repeatedly expressed its position. Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lin Jian stated on the 15th that China's position on the Ukraine crisis has always been clear and consistent. We have always believed that dialogue and negotiation are the only feasible way to resolve the Ukraine crisis. China firmly opposes any illegal unilateral sanctions and "long-arm jurisdiction," as there are no winners in a tariff war, and coercion and pressure cannot solve the problem. We hope all parties will create an atmosphere and accumulate conditions to promote the political resolution of the Ukraine crisis, doing more things that encourage peace and promote dialogue.
This article is an exclusive piece by Observer News, and without permission, it cannot be reprinted.
Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7530153640066040347/
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