'If I Catch Them, They Get 50% Tariff': Trump's Fresh Warning To China Over Iran Aid

Washington DC: US President Donald Trump on Sunday issued a fresh warning to China, says that if he caught them helping Iran amidst the ongoing war in the Middle East, he will levy 50% tariffs on the Asian country.

"If we catch them doing that, they get a 50 per cent tariff, which is a staggering…That's a staggering amount," Trump told Fox News show Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo.

This comes after reports that China is preparing to deliver new air defence systems to Iran within the next few weeks.

The reported shipment involves shoulder-fired anti-air missile systems known as MANPADS, which posed a big threat to low-flying US military aircraft during the recent conflict. As per reports, US intelligence suggested that Beijing is working to route the shipments through third countries to conceal their origin.

Meanwhile, China has denied the allegations, with a spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Washington stating, "China has never provided weapons to any party to the conflict; the information in question is untrue." The spokesperson urged the US to refrain from making baseless allegations and sensationalism.

Trump earlier warned that China will have “big problems” if it is sending arms to Iran amidst the ongoing war between US-Israel and Iran.

Last week, Trump announced that US will slap 50% Tariffs on nations supplying weapons to Iran. He stressed that he will make no exclusions or exemptions and all goods sold to America by countries arming Iran will have to bear the brunt of the new tariffs.

In a post on Truth Social, President Trump wrote, “A Country supplying Military Weapons to Iran will be immediately tariffed, on any and all goods sold to the United States of America, 50%, effective immediately. There will be no exclusions or exemptions!”

Iran War

The United States of America and Israel launched joint airstrikes on Iran on February 28 in a massive military operation, codenamed ‘Operation Epic Fury’ by the US and ‘Operation Roaring Lion’ by Israel.

Iran retaliated and launched attacks on US military bases located in different countries in the Middle East, including the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Jordan and Saudi Arabia. Iran codenamed its retaliation 'Operation True Promise IV'.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said, “This operation against the positions of American-Zionist terrorists in the heart of the occupied territories and American terrorist bases began with massive explosions under the blessed code name 'Ya Hassan ibn Ali (peace be upon him)'.”

Earlier this month, US and Iran agreed to a two-week ceasefire. However, it wobbled over several disagreements, including the continuous attacks on Lebanon. Both sides met in Islamabad to negotiate their demands on Saturday. However, the talks failed as the bone of contention - Iran's nuclear programme - remained unresolved.

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