The embassies of the United
States and China in Fiji’s capital Suva have begun a
diplomatic war of words in reaction to Donald Trump’s tariff
policies.
Earlier this month, President Trump paused
the sweeping tariffs he had announced on dozens of
countries, except for those on China.
His
administration has raised tariffs on Chinese imports to 145
percent. In response, Beijing has slapped retaliatory duties
of 125 percent on US goods.
China’s Commerce Ministry
said it will not back down and “will take countermeasures in
a resolute and reciprocal manner”, signalling that the trade
war between the world’s two biggest economies is far from
over.
The impact of the diplomatic tussle is being
felt thousands of miles from the corridors of power in
Washington and Beijing, in the South Pacific, as the two
countries’ ambassadors take shots at each other over who has
the moral high ground.
Beijing’s top diplomat in Fiji
Zhou Jian held a news conference where he told local
reporters that the US’s decision to impose “reckless tariffs
on its global trading partners” was “absurd, selfish,
disastrous, and bullying”.
Zhou said China is a major
nation and a responsible member of the international
community.
“We stand firm against power politics, not
only to protect our own sovereignty, security, and
development interests, but also to uphold the common
interest of all humanity, safeguard international fairness
and justice,” he said.
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“China’s position has long been
clear: our door remains open for talks, but any dialogue
must be conducted on the basis of mutual respect and
equality. If confrontation is the path chosen, China will
fight to the end.
“China’s opposition to US economic
bullying is a just cause – and just causes will always win
the widespread support of people around the world.”
In
response, the US Embassy in Suva shared a report by the
Fijian state broadcaster FBC, with the headline China
labels US tariffs as ‘Economic Bullying’ and quoted the
Bible verse ‘Matthew 7:3″, suggesting that China should
focus on its own shortcomings and not place blame on the
US.
The US Ambassador to Fiji Marie Damour followed
with a statement, saying, “It’s puzzling that any country
purporting to be a friend to Fiji would try to publicly
undermine Fiji’s bilateral relationship with one of its
partners.”
“That’s not who the United States is or the
kind of partner we strive to be,” she was quoted as saying
by the Fiji Times.
“Implying that Fiji is incapable of
steering its own foreign policy not only insults the
country’s leadership, but also disrespects its
people.”
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