Chinese Ambassador Xu Feihong on Thursday described the United States’ punitive tariffs on India an act of bullying, and said that Beijing would “firmly stand” with New Delhi against unfair trade practices, The Hindu reported.

“The United States has long benefited greatly from free trade, but now it is using tariffs as a bargaining chip to demand exorbitant prices from various countries,” Feihong said at an event in Delhi.

“In the face of such acts, silence or compromise only emboldens the bully,” he added. “China will firmly stand with India to uphold the multilateral trading system with the World Trade Organization at its core.”

His comments come ahead of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Summit in Tianjin, which will be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin and other regional leaders.

The Chinese envoy said the developments pose an opportunity for India and China to close ranks and build “strategic mutual trust”, moving beyond their longstanding rivalry, The New Indian Express reported.

“India and China are not rivals, we are partners,” Feihong said. “We must manage our differences through dialogue and strengthen cooperation.”

Emphasising shared responsibilities, he added that “India and China are the double engines of economic growth in Asia”.

“Our unity benefits not only Asia, but the world at large,” he said. “As major developing countries, we must work together to promote a multipolar world.”

However, while responding to a question about cross-border terrorism and China’s support to Pakistan, Xu said: “Not only China and India, but Pakistan is also a victim of terrorism. What we should do is make joint efforts to fight against it.”

The comments came amid diplomatic tensions between New Delhi and Washington after the Donald Trump administration on August 6 doubled the tariffs on goods imported from India to 50% for purchasing Russian oil amid the war in Ukraine.

Trump has repeatedly alleged that India’s purchases of Russian oil were “fuelling the war machine”.

Meanwhile, India and China have been engaged in rebuilding their bilateral ties.

Border tensions between India and China escalated in June 2020 when a violent face-off between Indian and Chinese soldiers took place in Ladakh’s Galwan Valley along the Line of Actual Control. It led to the death of 20 Indian soldiers. Beijing said that the clash left four of its soldiers dead.

Following this, both countries deployed thousands of troops along with heavy artillery in the region.

Since the Galwan clashes, China and India have held several rounds of military and diplomatic talks to resolve their border standoff.

In October, the two countries announced that they had reached a patrolling arrangement along the Line of Actual Control, “leading to the disengagement” of the two militaries in eastern Ladakh.

The agreement came two days before Modi and Xi held a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Kazan. This was the first formal meeting of the two leaders since the military standoff began in mid-2020.

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