China has put civilian officials on “wartime footing” and initiated a worldwide diplomatic campaign in response to U.S. President Donald Trump‘s newest trade salvos, reflecting an abrupt escalation of Cold War-era tensions between the world’s two biggest economies.
Foreign and commerce ministry officials reportedly have been ordered to cancel leaves and stay on standby 24/7. Meanwhile, propaganda sections are disseminating defiant content, such as black-and-white archives of Mao Zedong stating he would never give in. The decision follows Trump’s precipitous tariff increase, positioned as a “Liberation Day” by his supporters. It represents a jarring reversal of China’s past attempts to tamp down the fight through accommodation.
Foreign affairs and commerce ministry bureaucrats have allegedly been instructed to postpone vacations and remain on call 24/7. Propaganda officials have led the way in shaping the response with combative messaging such as videos of Mao Zedong promising never to give in, Reuters said, citing several sources familiar with the approach. The swift change in stance comes after Trump’s recent tariff threats—referred to by his allies as a “Liberation Day” gesture—and represents a break from months of Chinese attempts at seeking compromise.
Beijing has now increased retaliatory tariffs and is appealing to other countries that are the targets of US trade policy, such as European allies, Japan, and South Korea, to join forces and respond. The United States has increased its trade war with China dramatically, imposing tariffs of 145% to counter what President Donald Trump branded as Beijing’s “unfair trade practices.” This followed China firing back with its own 125% tariffs, alarmingly sending shivers to businesses worldwide and economists.
Firms operating between the two nations now exist under tight uncertainty, with some casting doubts over the long-term sustainability of their businesses. The recent tit-for-tat actions have lowered the curtain over decades of profound economic relations between the world’s two biggest economies, with experts cautioning that a complete collapse may have global ramifications. A Chinese embassy official in Washington said in reply to Reuters’ questions that Beijing was not eager to engage in trade wars “but is not afraid of them.”
“If the US prioritizes its own interests above the public interest of the international community and offers all countries’ legitimate interests as a sacrifice to its own hegemony, it will definitely face more powerful opposition from the international community,” the official stated.
The Japanese and South Korean embassies in Washington did not comment on the request for remarks regarding negotiations between their nations and China. In the aftermath of the initial Chinese backlash, Trump declared:
“China played it wrong, they panicked – the one thing they cannot afford to do!”
Trump has also hinted that Beijing wanted to negotiate a deal but “they just don’t know how quite to go about it.”
US officials have also faulted China for the stalemate because its trillion-dollar trade surplus with the world is a byproduct of what they perceive as abuses of the international commerce system that have not been resolved satisfactorily through decades of talks. China’s foreign ministry has recalled several of the chiefs of its missions abroad to Beijing for a special conference convened this week to synchronize the response, two Beijing-based diplomats said.
China has also written formal letters to the governments of other nations, being pushed by Trump to negotiate trade. China has approached some governments of the G20 with the language for a joint statement expressing support for the multilateral trading system, an EU diplomat reported to Reuters.
But the diplomat said the message failed to respond to concerns also shared by non-U.S. governments regarding Chinese overcapacity, its subsidy model, and so-called unfair trade competition. Beijing has stated that those issues are exaggerated and that the development of its high-tech sectors is a result of its comparative strengths and contributes positively to the world.
Chinese authorities also posted on Musk’s X platform a video of Chairman Mao delivering a speech in 1953, the most recent time that the U.S. and China were directly at war with each other during the Korean War. In the video, Mao, whose eldest son perished in the war, declares that peace is in the hands of the Americans.
“No matter how long this war is going to last, we’ll never give in,”
he stated. “We’ll fight until we totally prevail.”
