China threatens US with a lawsuit in WTO over Trump tariff

China will file a lawsuit in the World Trade Organization (WTO) against the US for its “wrongful practice, the commerce ministry said on Sunday.

The move came after an order issued by US President Donald Trump on Saturday imposing 25% tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico, along with a 10% tariff on Chinese goods that will take effect on Tuesday.

China’s commerce ministry condemned the US move, saying that it “seriously violates” WTO regulations and called for “frank dialogue and stronger cooperation.”

The measures, as per a statement from the White House was being taken to to hold Mexico, Canada, and China accountable to their promises of halting illegal immigration and stopping poisonous fentanyl and other contraband drugs from flowing into the US.

Chinese officials have failed to take the actions necessary to stem the flow of precursor chemicals to known criminal cartels and shut down money laundering by transnational criminal organizations, the White House statement read.

Additional tariffs are not constructive and will undermine future cooperation on drug control, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated. The latest US trade protectionist measure has drawn widespread opposition both domestically and internationally, the Xinhua News Agency said today.

“The unilateral imposition of tariffs by the US seriously violates WTO rules. It does not contribute to resolving its own issues, but also undermines normal economic and trade cooperation between China and the US,” the Chinese foreign ministry statement read.

“There are no winners in a trade war or tariff war,” China’s foreign ministry said, adding that the additional duties would “inevitably affect and damage future bilateral cooperation on drug control”.

With inputs from agencies