China warned the Trump Administration that the move to ban it and other foreign adversaries from purchasing farmland in the U.S. “will only backfire”.

“The United States overstretched the concept of national security in restraining other countries’ and entities’ rights to purchase land,” Mao Ning, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson, said at a press briefing on Wednesday, July 9.

Mao said the ban, part of the “National Farm Security Action Plan” unveiled by U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins on Tuesday, July 8, is “against international trade rules”.

“We urge the United States to stop politicizing economic and trade affairs,” Mao said.

This is a breaking news story. Updates to follow.