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Chinese Vent Anger at Trump's Trade War with Memes, Mockery

A meme video circulating on social media makes fun of Trump's policy to bring manufacturing back to the United States. Adek BERRY / AFP
A meme video circulating on social media makes fun of Trump's policy to bring manufacturing back to the United States. Adek BERRY / AFP
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Chinese Vent Anger at Trump's Trade War with Memes, Mockery

A meme video circulating on social media makes fun of Trump's policy to bring manufacturing back to the United States. Adek BERRY / AFP
A meme video circulating on social media makes fun of Trump's policy to bring manufacturing back to the United States. Adek BERRY / AFP

While China's leaders use their economic and political might to fight Donald Trump's trade war "to the end", its army of social media soldiers are embarking on a more humorous campaign online.
The US president's tariff blitz has seen Washington and Beijing impose eye-watering duties on imports from the other, fanning a standoff between the economic superpowers that has sparked global recession fears and sent markets into a tailspin, AFP said.

Trump says his policy is a response to years of being "ripped off" by other countries and aims to bring manufacturing back to the United States, forcing companies to employ US workers.

But China's online warriors have been taking advantage of the massive strides in artificial intelligence to create memes highlighting that many of the goods bought by Americans such as shoes and smartphones are made using cheap Chinese labor.
Defiant posts have shot to the top of most-searched lists on social media, flooding platforms with patronizing comments and jokes.

In one video, a Chinese internet user opens his hands to reveal what goods he buys from the United States -- nothing.
His dozens of videos railing against the United States have accumulated tens of millions of views on TikTok, officially blocked in China but accessible through a virtual private network (VPN).

"Donald Trump started a trade war, so... F*** MAGA," he says in one video, referring to Trump's campaign slogan of Make America Great Again.

'Two-faced behavior'
The user, based in northeastern China's Liaoning province and who asked to be identified by his online persona "Buddhawangwang", told AFP the posts were a way of "venting my anger".
The 37-year-old poster said he moved to California in 2019 but "threw away" his green card four years later -- angry over "prejudices against China".

That included "fake news" about Xinjiang, the far-western region where Beijing is accused of widespread human rights abuses against minorities. China denies the claims.

Now, he feels vindicated in his quest to "debunk Western propaganda".

For many in China -- whose status as "the world's factory" fueled its meteoric rise as an economic superpower -- the idea of Americans making their own shoes or phones is laughable.

AI-generated videos putting Trump, US Vice President JD Vance -- who sparked outrage with comments referring to "Chinese peasants" -- and tech mogul Elon Musk on footwear and iPhone assembly lines quickly went viral.

Others show rows of befuddled overweight shophands fiddling with sewing machines as Americans make clothes, shoes and electronic devices.
The alleged hypocrisy of US officials railing against China while enjoying the fruits of globalization has also been targeted.

One post traced a dress worn by White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt to Chinese online shopping platform Taobao.

"Attacking 'Made in China' is work; enjoying 'Made in China' is life," one comment read.

"Two-faced behavior. Don't wear it then, don’t use it," another said.

Another post shared by Beijing's foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning showed Trump's trademark "MAGA" hat marked "Made in China" -- with a price tag indicating an increased cost.

'Made in China'
Elsewhere, Chinese users have taken to TikTok to show Americans how they can get around the swingeing tariffs -- going to China and buying goods straight from the source.

In one, a man in a warehouse claiming to work at a factory making Birkenstocks in the eastern hub of Yiwu sold pairs of the iconic sandal for just $10.

"We have seven colors," he says, pointing to multiple pairs of shoes displayed on a cardboard box with the words "Made in China" printed on it.

"If you need, please contact me," he added, gesturing towards stacks of boxes behind him.

"There certainly is nationalism here," Gwen Bouvier, a professor at Shanghai International Studies University who researches social media and civic discourse, told AFP.

The videos make "fun of how rude JD Vance is and, by extension, the Trump administration", Bouvier said -- a timely clapback against the vice president's "peasants" comments.

But beneath the humor there is likely deep concern over the impact of the trade war on China's export-dependent economy.

Censors on the country's strictly regulated internet appear to have scrubbed out narratives that warn of the effects they may have on Chinese consumers and manufacturers.

On China's X-like Weibo platform, all comments under the hashtag "The United States will impose a 104% tariff on Chinese goods" have been removed.

By contrast, the hashtag "America is fighting a trade war while begging for eggs" -- a reference to soaring prices for the kitchen staple -- was viewed 230 million times.

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Varieties

Lonely Tree in Wales Is an Instagram Star, but its Fate Is Inevitable

The Lonely Tree, often pictured submerged in water, was first planted in 2010. (Getty Images)
The Lonely Tree, often pictured submerged in water, was first planted in 2010. (Getty Images)
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Lonely Tree in Wales Is an Instagram Star, but its Fate Is Inevitable

The Lonely Tree, often pictured submerged in water, was first planted in 2010. (Getty Images)
The Lonely Tree, often pictured submerged in water, was first planted in 2010. (Getty Images)

It is one of Wales' most-loved beauty spots - but the time of the so-called Lonely Tree being an Instagram star could be slowly coming to an end.

The birch tree's striking setting at Llyn Padarn in Eryri, also known as Snowdonia, draws photographers to capture the sight through the seasons, according to BBC.

But the local authority Cyngor Gwynedd has raised the prospect of the tree, which was planted around 2010, disappearing within the next decade or so.

A lack of nutrients in the soil means birch trees have “a relatively short lifespan” in the area, typically living for around 30 years, but the fact that The Lonely Tree is sometimes submerged in water means its time could be even shorter.

Thousands of walkers and photographers make their way there each year and the tree has many social media sites dedicated to it, including one with 3,500 members on Facebook.

Marc Lock from Bangor, Gwynedd, said: “The Lonely Tree holds a special place in my heart and that of my family.”

He added: “Nestled down by the Lonely Tree, it's a perfect spot for us to sit, reflect and soak in the breath-taking scenery. We often go paddleboarding there in the summer months.”

However, Lock said the area really became his sanctuary after his wife bought him a camera for Christmas and he took up photography.

It was the place he headed to straight away, and he returns regularly at various times of the day and throughout the seasons.

“It's my go-to spot whenever I have some free time and my camera in hand,” he added. “I can't imagine what I would do if anything devastating happened to it like that at the Sycamore Gap tree at Hadrian's Wall. It's simply unthinkable.”

The Sycamore Gap was a much-loved landmark beside Hadrian's Wall in Northumberland that also drew hikers and photographers from far and wide.

It was more than 100 years old and had been the scene of many proposals, with people making the trip there from around the world.

But it was cut down by vandals in September 2023, causing uproar, with thousands of people leaving tributes and posting messages about their love for the beauty spot.

Two men were jailed for four years and three months after admitting the illegal felling.

While maybe not quite as famous as the Sycamore Gap was, The Lonely Tree is every bit as special to those that hold it dear to their heart.

Varieties

Four Signs You're Self-Sabotaging Your Joy

Threat or uncertainty can reduce cognitive regulation and increase avoidance behaviors. (Indiana University)
Threat or uncertainty can reduce cognitive regulation and increase avoidance behaviors. (Indiana University)
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Four Signs You're Self-Sabotaging Your Joy

Threat or uncertainty can reduce cognitive regulation and increase avoidance behaviors. (Indiana University)
Threat or uncertainty can reduce cognitive regulation and increase avoidance behaviors. (Indiana University)

Most of us, at some point in our lives, have stood in the way of our own growth.

We make progress on a project, start to feel hopeful about a relationship, or finally get on track with a goal, and then we do something that undermines it.

We fall into a procrastination spiral, pick a fight, or simply quit; in doing so, we talk ourselves out of something that could potentially bring us happiness.

There’s a name for this kind of behavior: self-sabotage.

Dr. Mark Travers, an American psychologist with degrees from Cornell University and the University of Colorado Boulder, wrote an essay at Psychology Today about four well-studied reasons why people sabotage good things, based on research in psychology.

Avoiding blame

According to Travers, one of the most consistently researched patterns in self-sabotage comes from what psychologists call self-handicapping.

He said this is a behavior in which people create obstacles to their own success so that if they fail, they can blame external factors instead of internal ability.

A prime example comes from classic research in which researchers observed students who procrastinated studying for an important test. The ones who failed mostly attributed it to a lack of preparation rather than a lack of organization or discipline.

Self-handicapping is not simply laziness or whimsy. Rather, it is a strategy people use to protect their self-worth in situations where they might perform “poorly” or where they might be perceived as inadequate.

Fear of failure or success

People often think of the fear of failure as the main emotional driver behind self-sabotage.

But research points to the fear of success as an equal, yet less-talked-about engine of the phenomenon. Both fears can push people to undermine opportunities that are actually aligned with their long-term goals.

He said people who worry that failure will confirm their negative self-beliefs are more likely to adopt defensive avoidance tactics, like procrastination or quitting early.

Fear of success, though less widely discussed, operates in a similar fashion. What motivates this fear is the anxiety that comes with the consequences of success.

So, self-sabotaging success can be a way to stay within a comfort zone where expectations are familiar, even if that zone is unsatisfying.

Negative self-beliefs

Self-sabotage is tightly intertwined with how people view themselves. When someone doubts their worth, their ability, or their right to be happy, they may unconsciously act in ways that confirm those negative self-views.

Psychological theories help explain this.

Self-discrepancy theory proposes that people experience emotional discomfort when their actual self does not match their ideal self. This mismatch can lead to negative emotions such as shame, anxiety, or depression.

Coping with stress and anxiety

Self-sabotage often emerges in moments of high stress or emotional threat. When people feel overwhelmed, anxious, or stretched thin, their nervous systems shift into protective modes. Instead of moving forward, they retreat, avoid, or defensively withdraw.

Threat or uncertainty can reduce cognitive regulation and increase avoidance behaviors. In situations of perceived threat, even if the threat is potential success or evaluation, people can default to behaviors that feel safer, even if they undermine long-term goals.

Varieties

2025 Was the World’s Third-Warmest Year on Record, EU Scientists Say

This photograph taken in Lanester, western France on May 31, 2025, shows smoke rising from a factory. (AFP)
This photograph taken in Lanester, western France on May 31, 2025, shows smoke rising from a factory. (AFP)
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2025 Was the World’s Third-Warmest Year on Record, EU Scientists Say

This photograph taken in Lanester, western France on May 31, 2025, shows smoke rising from a factory. (AFP)
This photograph taken in Lanester, western France on May 31, 2025, shows smoke rising from a factory. (AFP)

The planet experienced its third-warmest year on record in 2025, and average temperatures have ​exceeded 1.5 degrees Celsius of global warming over three years, the longest period since records began, EU scientists said on Wednesday.

The data from the European Union's European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) found that the last three years were the planet's three hottest since records began - with 2025 marginally cooler than 2023, by just 0.01 C.

Britain's national weather service, the UK Met Office, confirmed its own data ranked 2025 as the third-warmest in records going back to 1850. The World Meteorological Organization will publish its temperature ‌figures later ‌on Wednesday.

The hottest year on record was 2024.

EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS

ECMWF ‌said ⁠the ​planet ‌also just had its first three-year period in which the average global temperature was 1.5 C above the pre-industrial era - the limit beyond which scientists expect global warming will unleash severe impacts, some of them irreversible.

"1.5 C is not a cliff edge. However, we know that every fraction of a degree matters, particularly for worsening extreme weather events," said Samantha Burgess, strategic lead for climate at ECMWF.

Governments pledged under the 2015 Paris Agreement to try to avoid exceeding ⁠1.5 C of global warming, measured as a decades-long average temperature compared with the pre-industrial era.

But their failure to reduce ‌greenhouse gas emissions means that level could now be ‍breached before 2030 - a decade earlier than ‍had been predicted when the Paris accord was signed in 2015, ECMWF said.

"We are ‍bound to pass it," said Carlo Buontempo, director of the EU's Copernicus Climate Change Service. "The choice we now have is how to best manage the inevitable overshoot and its consequences on societies and natural systems."

POLITICAL PUSHBACK

Currently, the world's long-term warming level is about 1.4 C above the pre-industrial ​era, ECMWF said. Measured on a short-term basis, the world already breached 1.5 C in 2024.

Exceeding the long-term 1.5 C limit - even if ⁠only temporarily - would lead to more extreme and widespread impacts, including hotter and longer heatwaves, and more powerful storms and floods.

In 2025, wildfires in Europe produced the highest total emissions on record, while scientific studies confirmed specific weather events were made worse by climate change, including Hurricane Melissa in the Caribbean and monsoon rains in Pakistan which killed more than 1,000 people in floods.

Despite these worsening impacts, climate science is facing increased political pushback. US President Donald Trump, who has called climate change "the greatest con job", last week withdrew from dozens of UN entities including the scientific Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

The long-established consensus among the world's scientists is that climate change is real, mostly caused by humans, and getting worse. Its main cause ‌is greenhouse gas emissions from burning fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas, which trap heat in the atmosphere.