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The Office of the United States Trade Representative announced on Wednesday (8th) that it plans to raise the tariff on US $200 billion of Chinese goods to the United States from 10% to 25% on Friday (10th). In response, China quickly responded, pointing out that escalating trade frictions is not in the interests of the two peoples and the people of the world. China deeply regrets this. If the US tariff measures are implemented, China will have to take necessary countermeasures.

Comparing the statements of China and the United States, there are two points worth paying attention:

First, the content of the tariff increase in the US statement is similar to the information released two days ago, but the focus is on "planning", that is, "planning". Since it is "intending" to raise tariffs, this means that the possibility of changing one's mind in the future cannot be ruled out.

Second, the Chinese side responded quickly, about two hours later, it was concise, but its attitude was clear and firm. The Chinese side's statement of more than 80 words contains three meanings: first, it points out that the negative impact of the US side's move "does not conform to the interests of the two peoples and the people of the world"; then it expresses China's attitude: "deep regret"; then, China's action "will have to take necessary countermeasures", of course, the premise is "if the US tariff measures are implemented".

On the occasion of the eleventh round of high-level economic and trade consultations between China and the United States, the two sides issued the above statement, which is intriguing. The US side's intention to put pressure on the price is obvious, while China's rapid response and calm attitude show that China has been prepared for a long time, reflecting its consistent principled position, that is, to talk, the door is open; to fight, to accompany to the end.

From this, people should see that talking about fighting and fighting while talking may have become the mode and norm for China and the United States to resolve economic and trade frictions.

Since February last year, Sino-US economic and trade consultations have made positive progress, but there have been many repetitions. This time, before the two sides started talking, the United States suddenly announced that it would upgrade tariffs. As the spokesperson of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, similar situations have occurred many times before. The Chinese side has long been accustomed to strange things, and will naturally face it calmly. When it sees a move, it will talk about it when it is necessary, and when it is necessary to counter it, it will counter it.

In fact, when announcing that it would upgrade tariffs, the United States also stated that the two sides still have a chance to reach a historic agreement and that the two sides are preparing for a meeting between the two heads of state after the agreement is reached. Behind this seemingly contradictory move shows that China and the United States are constantly adjusting their contacts to narrow their differences and expand their consensus by talking about the mode and normality of settling economic and trade frictions.

In this context, it is not difficult for people to understand why Liu He, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, Vice Premier of the State Council, and Chinese leader of the China-US Comprehensive Economic Dialogue, still decided to be invited to the United States to participate in the 9th. The eleventh round of high-level Sino-US economic and trade consultations held on the 10th. This is not that China is afraid or even forced to make concessions, but that China has long seen and adapted to the normal situation of Sino-US economic and trade frictions, so it is not disturbed by one thing at a time, but can grasp the general direction of the consultation process from a higher level.

It is China's consistent principled position to resolve conflicts and differences through negotiations. Ten rounds of high-level economic and trade consultations between China and the United States have gone through. The two sides have made a lot of substantive progress in trade procurement, structural issues, and implementation mechanisms. It is not easy and needs to be cherished. However, there are still problems that need to be further discussed. Therefore, at the end of the tenth round of high-level consultations, the two sides agreed that the eleventh round of consultations will be held in Washington this week to continue discussions. Although the US side did not play its cards according to common sense and created great confusion for this round of consultations, the Chinese side cannot be affected by this. Going to the United States for consultations as planned is China's respect for the rules of the negotiation and the results of the consensus reached by the two sides in the past 16 months.

Chinese people pay attention to rational rather than willful. China and the United States have different stages of economic development, and their economic structures and economic systems are also very different. It is normal for the two sides to have economic and trade frictions, and various twists and turns in the consultation process are also expected.

Now, the U.S. says it wants to upgrade tariffs, which shows that it has become a little anxious. Although the U.S. has repeatedly claimed that China is paying for U.S. tariffs, U.S. lawmakers do not agree with this statement. For example, Republican Senator James Lankford said that American importers have paid more than $16 billion in tariffs to the government, and the tariffs are not borne by Chinese exporters, but by American companies.

In contrast, China has a clear understanding of the long-term, complex and arduous nature of Sino-US economic and trade issues, and will not deviate from the original track due to a temporary incident. Past experience has proved that hard pressure will not solve the problem at all, and we will eventually return to the negotiating table. Moreover, the more differences there are, the more face-to-face communication is required. China's planned visit to the United States for consultations is to resolve each other's concerns and push the negotiations back to a rational track.

More importantly, China has always been a responsible power. Chinese President Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized that relations between major powers are related to global strategic stability. China and the United States share extensive common interests and shoulder important responsibilities in maintaining world peace and stability and promoting global development and prosperity. For more than a year, Sino-US economic and trade frictions have not only harmed the interests of the two countries, but also dragged down global economic growth. The latest World Economic Outlook report released by the International Monetary Fund lowered global economic growth this year and next by 0.2 per cent and 0.1 per cent to 3.5 per cent and 3.6 per cent, respectively.

Whenever there is a positive signal from the Sino-US economic and trade consultations, the Sino-US and global stock markets will be boosted, and whenever the consultations are frustrated, the stock market will inevitably oscillate. This reflects that the world will benefit from the U. S.-China handshake and peace, and that the world is bound to be dragged down if the U. S.-China talks break down.

In the face of US tariff pressure, China still calmly goes to the appointment, which is not only responsible for China and the United States and the two peoples, but also safeguarding the development interests of the people of all countries in the world and providing more stability and predictability for the recovery of the world economy.

Soon, the eleventh round of high-level economic and trade consultations between China and the United States will be held in Washington. China will continue to do its utmost and with the utmost sincerity to push the consultations back on track. However, negotiations are a matter for both sides, and the United States needs to meet each other in the opposite direction in order to manage differences and expand cooperation. The U.S. side has long been clear about China's bottom line, that is: China is not willing to fight a trade war, but it is not afraid to fight, and has to fight when necessary; China is also willing to adopt a cooperative approach to resolve the differences between the two sides, but the bottom line of cooperation is not to harm China's core national interests and the fundamental interests of the people.

Regardless of the outcome of the consultations in the next two days, China will calmly and calmly face all possibilities, continue to do well in China's affairs and take its own path. In the past 16 months, China's economy, society and public psychology have long been tested in the escalating tariff war of the United States, and its ability to resist pressure has been greatly enhanced. What's more, there are more positive signals in favor of China. China has the confidence and ability to withstand any storm and become more resilient in the fight against the storm, achieve high-quality development with greater reform and higher level of opening up, and create more opportunities for development cooperation for the world.