Trade Envoy Says China ‘Deferred’ When US Reached Out to Discuss Export Controls

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Oct 14, 2025 - 09:49 Updated: Oct 13, 2025 - 22:20
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Trade Envoy Says China ‘Deferred’ When US Reached Out to Discuss Export Controls

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The United States reached out for talks after reports emerged that China was expanding its rare earth export controls, but Beijing deferred, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said on Oct. 12.

During an interview with Fox News, Greer said that Washington had not received any prior notice from Beijing of the rare earth export controls, describing the move as a “power grab” by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

“I can tell you that we were not notified, and quickly, as soon as we found out from public sources, we reached out to the Chinese to have a phone call, and they’ve deferred,” he said.

Greer said that a meeting between President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping could still occur on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in South Korea later this month, which both leaders are expected to attend.

He also noted that the CCP’s statement suggests that Beijing may have realized that it overstepped the bounds of what is considered acceptable in international trade.

“I think some of this messaging has signaled that they understand that there is a serious issue here,” Greer said.

His remarks came after China’s Ministry of Commerce said in an Oct. 13 statement that it had already notified “relevant countries” of the export controls through bilateral dialogue mechanisms. The ministry also said that export controls are not export bans and that export licenses would still be granted to eligible applicants.
Trump announced on Oct. 10 an additional 100 percent tariff on Chinese goods and new export controls on critical software in response to China’s rare earth export controls.

The measures are set to take effect on Nov. 1, though Trump said they could be implemented sooner depending on Beijing’s response.

In an Oct. 12 post on Truth Social, Trump said that the United States has no intention of harming China.

“Don’t worry about China, it will all be fine! Highly respected President Xi just had a bad moment. He doesn’t want Depression for his country, and neither do I. The U.S.A. wants to help China, not hurt it,” he stated.

China expanded restrictions on the export of rare earth elements on Oct. 9, barring overseas defense companies from accessing critical metals. The curbs are expected to take effect on Dec. 1.

Twelve of 17 rare earth elements are now on China’s export control list. Certain equipment and technology used to make rare earths—including mining, smelting and separation, magnet material manufacturing, and recycling of secondary resources—are also subject to the export licensing requirements.

Under the new regulation, applications for rare earth export licenses from foreign defense companies will be rejected “in principle,” while those from overseas chipmakers will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis, China’s Ministry of Commerce said.

The updated rules also require companies operating outside China to obtain an export license when shipping products containing more than 0.1 percent of rare earths sourced from China, beginning Dec. 1.

Dorothy Li contributed to this report.
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