China defends buying Russian oil after Donald Trump’s tariff threat

Donald Trump said earlier this week he could punish China with additional tariffs over its purchases of Russian oil, saying “that may happen.”

China said its imports of Russian oil are justified, pushing back against US threats of new tariffs after Washington slapped secondary levies on India for buying energy from Moscow.

“It is legitimate and lawful for China to conduct normal economic, trade and energy cooperation with all countries around the world, including Russia,” the Chinese Foreign Ministry said Friday in a statement to Bloomberg News. “We will continue to adopt reasonable energy security measures in accordance with our national interests.”

Donald Trump said earlier this week he could punish China with additional tariffs over its purchases of Russian oil, saying “that may happen.” The US president has also signaled his interest in brokering a peace deal in the Russia-Ukraine conflict and views pressure on big Russian trade partners to be part of that effort.

Russian President Vladimir Putin met this week with Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff for nearly three hours of talks in the Kremlin. Trump on Wednesday said there was a “very good chance” he’d meet with Putin, though cautioned there had not yet been a “breakthrough” in the talks.

Chinese President Xi Jinping welcomed direct communications between Putin and Trump on Friday during his first known call with the Russian leader in months.

Xi also set out China’s position on Ukraine to Putin, describing the situation as a set of complex issues with no simple solutions, according to Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.

Although Trump has warned over China’s purchases of Russian oil, his top adviser Peter Navarro played down the likelihood of new tariffs on Chinese exports, saying higher duties “may hurt the US.”

When asked about Trump’s comments on Thursday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Fox News tariffs on China over oil purchases “could be on the table at some point.”

China’s imports from Russia edged up in July to just over $10 billion — the highest level since March — according to the latest customs data. But overall this year, imports from Russia are still down 7.7% compared with the same period in 2024.

US-China ties have steadied after the two sides agreed to put sky-high tariffs on hold as they seek to negotiate an agreement. Trump said this week he was getting “very close” to a deal with with China to extend the truce, which is due to expire Tuesday.