Chinese Customs will strictly enforce countermeasures against U.S. tariff hikes: senior official

The Chinese Customs will strictly enforce the various countermeasures against U.S. tariff hikes in accordance with law, to safeguard national interests and uphold global trade fairness, a senior Customs official said on Monday.

Speaking at a press conference in Beijing, Wang Lingjun, deputy director of the General Administration of Customs (GAC), outlined China's foreign trade performance in the first quarter of this year and responded to media inquiries regarding China-U.S. trade amid the recent U.S. abuse of tariff imposition.

"Recently, the U.S. government has been abusing the imposition of tariffs, which has inevitably had a negative impact on global trade, including trade between China and the United States. In response, China has promptly implemented necessary countermeasures. This is intended not only to safeguard China's legitimate rights and interests, but also to uphold international trade rules and global fairness and justice. China will unswervingly remain committed to advancing high-level opening up and engaging in mutually beneficial economic and trade cooperation with other countries around the world," Wang said.

On the role of the Customs, Wang said that the GAC will firmly implement the relevant decisions and plans adopted by the central authorities and fulfill its responsibilities in enforcing the various countermeasures.

"China's Customs authorities will resolutely implement the decisions and plans of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, fulfill their responsibilities and strictly enforce all countermeasures against the United States in accordance with law to safeguard national sovereignty, security and development interests. We will step up efforts to advance the development of smart customs and enhance international cooperation, while innovating customs supervision systems, continuously improving regulatory efficiency and service quality, and facilitating smoother customs clearance for enterprises. With practical achievements in more effective regulation, higher security control, greater convenience, and stricter crackdowns on smuggling, the Chinese Customs will work to promote steady development of foreign trade," Wang said.

Chinese Customs will strictly enforce countermeasures against U.S. tariff hikes: senior official

Chinese Customs will strictly enforce countermeasures against U.S. tariff hikes: senior official

The Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada, the country's parliament, will hold a vote on May 8 to ratify a natural resources agreement signed with the United States earlier this week.

The U.S. Treasury Department announced on Wednesday an agreement between the two countries to establish the U.S.-Ukraine Reconstruction Investment Fund, which will give the U.S. preferential access to some of Ukraine's natural resources.

The fund will become operational within a month to a month and a half after the agreement is approved by the Ukrainian parliament, according to Ukraine's First Deputy Prime Minister and Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko on Friday.

Speaking to Ukrainian media, the minister expressed her hope for the early launch of the fund, saying it should become a tool for the recovery and development of key sectors of the Ukrainian economy.

Also on Friday, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said that the follow-up technical documents for the fund will not be intergovernmental, but will be signed at the institutional level.

He said that the follow-up agreements will be of an implementation nature between Ukraine's designated agency and the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), and therefore will not require ratification by the parliament.

Although there are no formal security guarantees in the agreement, but each new military assistance provided by the U.S. to Ukraine is considered a capital contribution, which will encourage the U.S. administration to continue and not to stop supplying Ukraine with weapons and intelligence, said the Ukrainian Prime Minister, who also called on the legislature to ratify the agreement as soon as possible.

Ukrainian parliament to vote on natural resources deal with U.S. on May 8