The US stated that many countries helped China evade tariffs

The United States announced that more than 40 countries helped China evade tariffs during the Trump era. The White House stated that these countries directed China's exports through countries with lower customs duties. Countries like Canada, India, Mexico, Japan, and South Korea helped China evade billions of dollars in tariffs during this process.

White House trade advisor Peter Navarro noted that this situation has caused "losses to the American workforce and billions of dollars in revenue." China's embassy in Washington criticized the US for targeting Chinese companies by using customs measures and state power, stating in a statement that "there are no winners in trade wars." It was also emphasized that "any unilateral action or agreement with foreign countries should not target the interests of third parties."

The White House report was published during a period of increasing sanctions between the US and China and came just weeks before President Donald Trump's meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Washington. The report indicates that, according to government and private sector estimates, goods worth between 30 billion and 300 billion dollars have transitioned from higher-tariff countries to lower-tariff countries. This process is referred to as "transshipment" and refers to the transfer of goods from one country to another through another country.

The White House claimed that China has benefited from this practice and redirected products through third countries to obtain lower tariffs. The report is expected to contribute to discussions between the two sides ahead of the planned meeting between Trump and Xi in September. Despite a pause in most tariffs following talks in May 2025, Washington and Beijing continued mutual sanctions in areas such as robots and drones.

Source: BBC Business