Politics and public opinion are major aspects in these disputes. If a country slaps tariffs on your products it is very difficult not to retaliate. That's true

Politics and public opinion are major aspects in these disputes. If a country slaps tariffs on your products it is very difficult not to retaliate. That's true in general and that's especially true in China regarding any foreign action that may be painted as unfair (For historical reasons this is always a big deal).