US President’s trade advisor Navarro reiterated in an interview with Bloomberg that Trump’s hawkish stance on trade with China has never softened. However, he highlighted that various aspects of negotiation and diplomatic considerations are involved.
Navarro bluntly stated that the US-China trade relationship is still in the exploration stage.
Peter Navarro is one of the few veterans from Trump’s first term who continues to serve in his second term. He had collaborated with former trade representative Robert Lighthizer and had negotiated with the Chinese side to reach a very comprehensive trade agreement.
“It was originally a fantastic thing that would have been beneficial to both China and the US because it would fundamentally change China’s trade model. They agreed to it, but at the last moment, Xi Jinping backed out. Later, we signed a so-called ‘lite agreement’ in January 2020, but they did not adhere to it,” stated Navarro.
“We face the problem when dealing with the Chinese, that you have to wonder if they are just trying to buy time through negotiations,” Navarro added.
Trump began his second term in January 2025 and met with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in October. They eventually reached a one-year trade truce agreement, agreeing to lower some tariffs and temporarily suspend certain high tariffs.
When asked if this meant Trump made concessions to Beijing, Navarro firmly denied this conclusion. He pointed out that initially, US tariffs on China were close to 50%, and after several rounds of increases and this reduction, the actual tariff rate on China only dropped to 45%.
He then mentioned that under US pressure, Mexico had followed suit with the US in imposing tariffs on Chinese goods, and the US is still strongly urging Europe to impose tariffs on China at the same level as the US.
“When the President imposes tariffs to protect the US from China’s deceptive practices, Chinese products cannot be sold as much in the US. So where do they sell their products? Europe, Mexico,” Navarro explained.
Responding to questions about whether Trump’s public expressions of respect towards Chinese leaders and gratitude for China’s purchase of soybeans indicated a change in his attitude towards China, Navarro adamantly denied any softening.
“You don’t understand Trump’s style of diplomacy. The biggest misunderstanding from outsiders, especially leftists, is that it is crucial for President Trump to maintain open lines of communication with authoritarian leaders like Xi Jinping, Putin, Erdogan of Turkey – who are all perceived as brutal dictators worldwide. They are indeed dictators. But they are also part of the world stage, and on that stage, you must negotiate with them,” Navarro elaborated.
Navarro then reminded that the world overlooks Beijing’s weaponization of rare earths and critical minerals.
“These minerals are the foundation of almost all high-tech products worldwide. China has been flexing its muscles in Europe, India, and the US, saying, ‘We do as we please, and if you try to stop us, we will take away your critical minerals.’ They think they have a monopoly on these resources, but it’s a matter of time before US innovation rapidly negates this weaponization threat,” he stated.
“But in the meantime, what do we do? We can only engage in diplomacy,” Navarro said. “If someone says this is weakness, they simply do not understand the intricacies involved.”
During the interview, Navarro made it explicitly clear that he respects the Chinese people but not the Chinese Communist Party.
“I have great respect for the Chinese people. The Chinese people are under the iron grip of the Chinese Communist Party,” he asserted.
“If China wants to move away from its mercantilist economic model that is harming global interests, causing extreme financial instability, and generating strong international disapproval towards China, it just needs to do one simple thing: reduce the savings rate by providing social security for the people,” Navarro emphasized.
“A communist socialist state not providing pensions or medical coverage to its citizens is simply incomprehensible. Instead, due to their way of operating, Communist Party members become wealthy while the rest of the population suffers,” he expressed.
Regarding the ongoing issue of Nvidia’s top-notch chip H200 being sold to China, Navarro emphasized that ongoing negotiations are being conducted with various countries worldwide, emphasizing that US-China relations are complex.
When asked if he personally welcomed China being allowed to purchase Nvidia’s H200 chips, Navarro refrained from providing a direct answer.
“I am one of the three senior advisors who have served continuously from the start to the end of Trump’s first administration. This is because I have always stuck to my lane,” he clarified. “Chips are not my expertise.”