China has launched a counterattack against the United States, and Biden's threatening words against China have just fallen, and within 24 hours, China has made two strikes in succession, what did Biden say?
On the 17th, when US President Joe Biden visited the headquarters of the American Steelworkers Union, he once again blamed China for the weakness of the steel industry, not only accusing China of "xenophobia", but also issuing a threatening warning to China, claiming that the United States would significantly increase tariffs on Chinese metal products, and called on US Trade Representative Tai Qi to consider "tripling" the tariffs imposed on Chinese steel and aluminum products before the end of the current "Section 301" investigation. It is understood that the average tariff imposed by the United States on some steel and aluminum products is 7.5%. According to a U.S. government official, Biden plans to increase this figure to 25%, and the proposed higher tax rate will apply to steel and aluminum products worth more than $1 billion.
So why did Biden suddenly attack China in the steel industry? According to Biden's own statement, he believes that "China's steel companies are not competing, but cheating and cheating." To put it simply, in Biden's view, the reason why China's steel industry has been able to develop so quickly is because of subsidies from the Chinese government, which undermines the principle of fair competition. But is this really the case? The answer is obviously not, the so-called "deception and cheating" in Biden's mouth is just his excuse, and the main reason for Biden's intention to raise US tariffs on Chinese metal products may have a lot to do with votes.
This year is the year of the U.S. presidential election, and at present, the Republican and Democratic parties in the United States can be said to have reached the stage of tearing their faces, and it can be said that various relationships and means have been used in order to win votes, and some U.S. media believe that Biden's shift to trade protectionist policies on the eve of the election is the same as that of former U.S. President Trump, whose purpose is to try to consolidate blue-collar votes, and is part of Biden's package of policies aimed at pleasing the swing state of Pennsylvania steelworkers. In response to the Biden administration's approach, our side launched a counterattack against the United States, and just after Biden's threatening words against China fell, within 24 hours, our side made two successive strikes. First of all, the spokesperson of the Chinese Embassy in Washington criticized the US side for pointing out that the tariffs are "the embodiment of unilateralism and protectionism" and that the US government is "making mistakes again and again". Immediately afterwards, at the regular press conference of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the 18th, spokesman Lin Jian stressed that we have always demanded that the US side earnestly respect the principle of fair competition, abide by WTO rules, and immediately stop trade protectionist measures against China. China will take all necessary measures to safeguard its legitimate rights.
In fact, Biden's above remarks are not so much about China as about the United States itself. You know, a number of research reports in the United States show that the U.S. shipbuilding industry has lost its competitive advantage many years ago due to overprotection. The US provides hundreds of billions of dollars in discriminatory subsidies to its own industries, but accuses China of adopting so-called "non-market practices". The "Inflation Reduction Act" signed by Biden the year before last has a clear example of the United States providing discriminatory subsidies to its own electric vehicle industry, for which the United States not only excludes Chinese electric vehicles, but also prohibits American companies from using China-related parts and batteries, and even the allies that the United States often talks about are the targets of US suppression. Let's ask, who is "xenophobic"?
It is worth mentioning that in recent months, Biden has been seeking to stabilize and ease tensions with China, and US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has just concluded her visit to China, and US Secretary of State Blinken is about to start his visit to China. On the eve of Blinken's visit to China, Biden's tough statement cannot be ruled out that this is another US side "making cards out of thin air" for itself, so that Blinken can have the so-called "bargaining chips" in dialogue and negotiations with China and strive for advantages for the US side, after all, the United States has done this kind of thing.