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U.S. President Donald Trump has reignited trade tensions with China, accusing Beijing of violating a recently agreed deal to ease tariffs, casting fresh uncertainty over already-stalled negotiations between the world’s two largest economies.
The comments came in a post on Trump’s Truth Social platform on Friday, where he states, “China, perhaps not surprisingly to some, HAS TOTALLY VIOLATED ITS AGREEMENT WITH US,” though he did not elaborate on the alleged breach.
However, Trump’s latest remarks have cast doubt on the durability of the truce, signaling potential strain on the still-active agreement.
The temporary agreement, reached in Geneva after senior-level talks, aimed to suspend further tariff hikes for 90 days and ease rising tensions. Before the deal, U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports had surged to as high as 145%, while China imposed retaliatory duties of up to 125% in response. The tit-for-tat escalation began in April, following President Donald Trump’s announcement of new tariffs aimed at narrowing the U.S. trade deficit.
Trump’s recent claims have cast doubt over the future of the agreement, putting pressure on the fragile pause without formally terminating the deal.
Asked about the president’s remarks in an interview with CNBC, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer accused Beijing of failing to ease trade restrictions, particularly on strategic resources. He claimed that China continued “to slow down and choke off things like critical minerals,” and emphasized that the U.S. trade deficit with China “continues to be enormous.”
Greer’s comments suggest that Washington remains dissatisfied with the lack of structural changes from Beijing, despite the temporary truce.
On Thursday, Secretary Bessent hinted that both Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping may need to step in directly to break the impasse. Whether top-level involvement will yield results remains unclear, as tensions appear to deepen once again just weeks after the Geneva breakthrough.
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