Beijing — April 21, 2025 — China has issued a stern warning to nations aligning with the United States on trade policy, vowing retaliation against any country that, in Beijing’s view, compromises Chinese interests. The warning comes amid a sharp escalation in the U.S.-China trade war, now spilling over into alliances and global economic blocs.

“Countries that choose to undermine China’s core economic interests by siding with hostile foreign powers will face consequences,” a spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Commerce said Monday, in what many observers interpreted as a direct threat to U.S. allies entering new trade deals with Washington.

The U.S. this month announced a temporary 90-day pause on planned tariff increases for select allied nations, while simultaneously raising tariffs on Chinese goods to a staggering 145% a move Washington says is aimed at countering unfair trade practices and rebalancing global supply chains.

Beijing, however, sees the action as economic containment. “This is not trade policy; it is economic warfare,” Chinese officials said in state media broadcasts, warning that countries signing trade agreements with the U.S. could find themselves locked out of Chinese markets, facing import restrictions, or becoming targets of other “countermeasures.”

The threat places key U.S. partners including South Korea, Australia, and members of the European Union in a difficult position as they attempt to balance their strategic alliances with Washington and their economic ties to Beijing.

The latest flare-up further destabilizes an already fragile global trade environment, with analysts warning of possible supply chain shocks, increased costs for consumers, and the real risk of a fractured global economy.

More responses from U.S. allies and trading partners are expected in the coming days, as nations weigh the cost of choosing sides in a deepening economic standoff between two global superpowers.