SI | STOP-Imperialism.com

The main theoretical journal of China’s Communist Party says the United States would be wrong to underestimate the Chinese people’s will to fight a trade war, stressing that Beijing is ready for a lengthy economic fight with Washington.

“China will not be afraid of any threats or pressure the United States is making that may escalate economic and trade frictions. China has no choice, nor escape route, and will just have to fight it out till the end,” read the commentary published in the bimonthly Qiushi on Sunday.

The US and China, the world’s two-largest economies, are in the midst of a year-long trade war, which the International Monetary Fund (IMF) says could cut the global economic output by 0.5 percent, or about 455 billion dollars, next year.

US President Donald Trump initiated that trade war with China last year, when he first imposed unusually heavy tariffs on imports from the country, seeking extensive structural changes from Beijing and alleging that it had engaged in intellectual property theft over many years, which China strongly denies.

Since then, the two countries have exchanged tariffs on more than 360 billion dollars in two-way trade.

The two sides have unsuccessfully held several rounds of talks to settle the issue.

Recently, and in what had essentially personal undertones, Trump threatened Chinese President Xi Jinping to meet him at an upcoming summit or see the tariffs imposed. 

PressTV-Trump threatens China’s President Xi: Meet me or else!

The US president threatens to impose additional tariffs on Chinese goods if President Xi fails to meet him at an upcoming G20 summit in Japan.

“No one, no force should underestimate and belittle the steel will of the Chinese people and its strength and tenacity to fight a war,” the Qiushi piece read, accusing the White House of trying to hamper Chinese technological innovation.

Washington has already blacklisted Chinese telecom giant Huawei, accusing it of spying through its sophisticated 5G technology for the Chinese government, an allegation strongly denied by both the firm and Beijing.

On Monday, the US Trade Representative’s Office will start seven days of testimony from US retailers, manufacturers, and other businesses about the American president’s plan to slap another 300 billion dollars’ worth of Chinese goods in tariffs.

The IMF has already warned that consumers in the US and China are “unequivocally the losers from trade tensions,” warning that the current trade war would “jeopardize” global growth this year, weakening confidence and pushing up prices for consumers.