The US-China trade war has entered a volatile new phase, with Washington rallying allies—including India—to counter Beijing’s latest economic move, which threatens to upend global supply chains.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has accused President Xi Jinping’s administration of taking “provocative” steps after China tightened export controls on rare earth minerals—critical inputs for industries ranging from defence and electronics to electric vehicles.

Recently, while speaking to a foreign media news channel, Bessent warned, “This is China versus the rest of the world. They announced these export controls that are going to go into effect next month, and we have aggressively pushed back against them. We're not sure where this came from, why the Chinese have decided to do it now.”

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