Speaking with CNBC, China's ambassador to the United States said his country would strike back against U.S. trade measures "very soon."
"We will certainly respond accordingly," said ambassador Cui Tiankai. "We will resort to the WTO — World Trade Organization — dispute settlement mechanism, and we'll, in accordance with Chinese laws, take measures to fight back."
"We certainly don't want to have any trade war with anybody, but people have to understand who started all this," he subsequently told CNBC.
Cui's comments came after President Donald Trump's White House unveiled a list Tuesday of Chinese imports the administration proposes to target as part of a crackdown on what the president deems unfair trade practices.
The world's second-largest economy will take steps against the new U.S. measures "maybe with the same intensity, the same scale," the ambassador said.
Sectors covered by the White House's proposed tariffs include products used for robotics, information technology, communication technology and aerospace.
Cui did not elaborate to CNBC about any specific details of what Beijing may do to counter the latest U.S. trade moves.
A White House official who declined to be named told CNBC that the government is discussing both preparations for potential Chinese retaliation and potential further action from the U.S.
But even beyond the economic effects to the two countries, Cui warned of a broader fallout from the trade disputes.
"In today's global economy, almost everything is interconnected. So when people take some wrong measures, when people take some protectionist measure, it will hurt people's confidence in the overall prospects for the economy. It may hurt finance, it may hurt trade, it may hurt economic performance, it may hurt consumer confidence — everything," he said.
Still, the ambassador left the door open for a deescalation between the world's two largest economies: "We are always ready to continue and intensify our dialogue and communication with the U.S. side on any possible economic or trade issues, but we need reciprocity. Our goodwill has to be met by the same degree of goodwill."
Reference: CNBC
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