US Treasury Secretary: US Won’t Harm China — and Expects Reciprocity from Beijing
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Washington does not intend to harm China’s economy and believes Beijing shares the same stance. “We don’t believe that they want to damage ours, but they are a command-and-control economy, and they are going to neither command nor control us — we’re going to assert sovereignty,” Bessent told CNBC.
His remarks come as the Chinese Embassy in Washington criticized the US approach of calling for dialogue while simultaneously threatening new restrictive measures, labeling it “erroneous” and counterproductive.
Embassy spokesperson Liu Pengyu urged the US to correct its stance and show genuine sincerity in talks, emphasizing that the previous rounds of economic consultations proved both sides can find solutions through mutual respect and equal dialogue.
“China’s position is consistent. If there’s a fight, we’ll fight to the end; if there’s a talk, the door is open,” Liu said, stressing that cooperation benefits both countries, while confrontation harms both.
