U.S. Trade Rep Katherine Tai defended tariffs against China at Semafor’s Made in America Event on Wednesday, saying that “tariffs are a part of the U.S.-China bilateral relationship” because of an “unfair” global economy.

“There’s no such thing as pure free trade,” Tai said, adding that China’s own tariffs and economic policy have allowed Beijing to dominate in certain global markets, chiefly electric vehicles.

The U.S. has “to get pragmatic in order to compete” with China, Tai said, which means adopting similar industrial policies that Beijing has used to hinder American production and trade.

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