China threatens countermeasures on US for 10% tariffs, denies fentanyl problem

Chinese President Xi Jinping’s government “strongly opposes” President Donald Trump’s 10% tariff threat, and has promised to retaliate with unspecified “countermeasures.”

The CCP (Chinese Communist Party) denies China contributes to America’s drug problem, which is the paramount reason the “Middle Kingdom” is staring down the barrel of an increased tariff on all goods from the mainland.

A Ministry of Commerce spokesperson on Sunday morning (local time) addressed the imminent tariff threat per a White House “fact sheet,” which listed the tariffs to be “on the grounds of fentanyl and other issues.”

“China is strongly dissatisfied with this and firmly opposes it,” reads a statement from the ministry.

Beijing asserts the US with its unilateral tariff increase “seriously violates WTO (World Trade Organization) rules” and intends to file a lawsuit for wrongful practice.

The CCP will also “take corresponding countermeasures to firmly safeguard its own rights and interests.”

“China hopes that the US will objectively and rationally view and deal with its own problems such as fentanyl, instead of threatening other countries with tariffs,” reads the statement.

“China urges the US to correct its wrong practices, work with China halfway, face problems, have frank dialogues, strengthen cooperation, and manage differences on the basis of equality, mutual benefit and mutual respect.”

According to Xinhua News, a spokesman from China’s Ministry of Public Security on Sunday said Beijing was extremely displeased with the Americans and firmly opposes the 10% additional tariff on imports from China “under the pretext of fentanyl-related issues.”

“China is one of the countries with the strictest drug control policies and the most rigorous enforcement in the world,” said the spokesman.

“China has consistently and resolutely fulfilled its international drug control obligations and actively engaged in international anti-drug cooperation with countries around the world, including the United States.”

The ministry spokesman said despite the fact there was no widespread domestic drug abuse in China, it was the first country in the world to “officially schedule fentanyl-related substances as a class in 2019 out of humanitarian goodwill and at the request of the US side.”

“However, the United States has not scheduled fentanyl-related substances as a class on a permanent basis,” the ministry said, adding there have been no reports from the Americans of any fentanyl seizures coming from China.

He said the US has only itself to blame for its uptick in fentanyl deaths.

“Shifting blame onto other nations not only fails to resolve the issue but also erodes the foundation of trust and cooperation in the field of drug control between China and the United States,” he said.