China 'firmly stands' with India on Trump tariffs, envoy says

Bloomberg News on Aug 21, 2025

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

A Chinese official expressed solidarity with India against U.S. tariffs on Indian exports, the latest sign of warming ties between the two Asian rivals.

“The United States has imposed tariffs of up to 50% on India and it has even threatened for more. China firmly opposes this,” China’s ambassador to India, Xu Feihong, said Thursday. “China will firmly stand with India to uphold the multilateral trading system, with the World Trade Organization at its core.”

Xu’s comments come as Beijing and New Delhi take steps to recalibrate their ties against the backdrop of their strained relations with the Trump administration. The two neighbors this week agreed to explore demarcating their disputed border as Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited India on his first trip in three years.

Xu was speaking at a panel event in New Delhi about the upcoming summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, taking place later this month in the Chinese city of Tianjin. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping then, marking his first trip to the country in seven years.

Xu criticized Washington for using tariffs as “a bargaining chip to demand exorbitant prices from various countries” despite benefiting from free trade.

“In the face of such acts, silence or compromise only emboldens the bully,” he said in his address to the event.

He added that countries of the Global South were “highly concerned” about how the two Asian nations could work together and “take the lead to help developing countries overcome difficulties.”

Xu reiterated his remarks in a post on X, where he expressed his appreciation to people “who have long cared for and supported China-India relations.”

(Jon Herskovitz contributed to this report.)