China dismisses Trump’s claims of trade deal breach as groundless

China has strongly pushed back against recent allegations by US President Donald Trump, who claimed that Beijing violated commitments made during recent trade discussions in Geneva. 

China said that the accusations are groundless, and officials have vowed to take necessary actions to protect the country’s interests, as per reports.

The response follows remarks made by Trump on Friday, where he accused China of reneging on a bilateral agreement aimed at reducing tariffs. However, China’s commerce ministry reportedly stated that Beijing had honored the consensus reached in May and had been proactive in implementing the agreed terms.

The ministry also criticised Washington for introducing what it called discriminatory and restrictive policies. These reportedly include export control guidance on artificial intelligence chips, a halt on sales of chip design software to Chinese firms, and visa restrictions on Chinese students.

The US government has unilaterally and repeatedly initiated new trade and economic disputes, increasing uncertainty and instability in bilateral relations, the ministry said in a statement released on Monday.

As per reports, during the Geneva talks in mid-May, both sides agreed to a 90-day suspension of high tariffs, with China also committing to ease countermeasures that had restricted the export of key industrial metals essential for US semiconductor and defense sectors.

Trump also announced plans to double tariffs on imported steel and aluminum to 50%. While China is the world’s largest steel producer, its direct exports to the US remain limited, largely due to the 25% tariffs introduced in 2018. In terms of aluminum, China currently ranks third among suppliers to the American market.