China said it is prepared for “any kind of war” with the United States.

After retaliating against President Donald Trump’s increasing trade penalties, China has warned the US that it is prepared to fight “any type” of war.
Trump’s increased tariffs on all Chinese goods have brought the world’s two largest economies one step closer to a trade war. China swiftly responded by levying duties on US agricultural products of 10–15%.

China’s embassy reposted a passage from a government statement on Tuesday, saying on X, “If war is what the US wants, be it a tariff war, a trade war, or any other type of war, we’re ready to fight till the end.”
It comes as leaders met in Beijing for the annual National People’s Congress, and it is some of the most forceful rhetoric China has used since Trump took office.

China would increase its defence budget by 7.2% this year, Premier Li Qiang said Wednesday, adding that “changes unseen in a century were unfolding across the world at a faster pace.”
This rise was anticipated and corresponds to the amount declared the previous year.

Beijing’s leaders are attempting to convey to the Chinese people that, despite the possibility of a trade war, they are optimistic that the nation’s economy can expand.

In contrast to the US, which Beijing claims is involved in conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine, China has been eager to project an image of being a stable, peaceful nation.

China might also seek to take advantage of Trump’s measures regarding US allies like Canada and Mexico, who have also been subject to tariffs, and won’t want to escalate the rhetoric too much in order to turn off possible new international partners.
In his speech in Beijing on Wednesday, the premier highlighted China’s intention to keep opening up and aimed to draw in more international investment.

China has previously made it clear that it is prepared for war. While conducting military exercises outside the self-governing island of Taiwan last October, President Xi urged soldiers to increase their readiness for conflict. However, military readiness and war readiness are not the same thing.

The Chinese embassy in Washington cited an English-language foreign ministry statement from the day before, accusing the United States of blaming China for the fentanyl drug’s invasion.

According to the foreign ministry spokesperson, “the fentanyl issue is a flimsy excuse to raise US tariffs on Chinese imports.”
We are not frightened by intimidation. Bullying is ineffective against us. “It is not appropriate to deal with China through coercion, threats, or pressure,” he continued.
One of the most tense relationships in the world is always that between the US and China. The China hawks in Trump’s cabinet may take this widely shared post on X as proof that Beijing poses the greatest economic and foreign policy threat to Washington.

After Trump invited Xi to his inauguration, Beijing officials had hoped that US-China relations would start off more amicably under his leadership. The two leaders had “a great phone call” a few days prior to Trump’s arrival in the White House, he added.

The two leaders were reportedly scheduled for another call last month. That didn’t occur.
Xi was already struggling with unemployment, a real estate crisis, and consistently low spending.

As thousands of representatives attend the National People’s Congress, a rubber-stamp parliament that makes decisions already decided behind closed doors, China’s authorities announced their plan to inject billions of dollars into the country’s struggling economy.
At $245 billion, China’s military budget is the second largest in the world, but it is still significantly less than the US’s. According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, Beijing spends 1.6% of its GDP on its military, which is far less than that of the US or Russia.

Analysts, however, think China minimises its defence spending.