US - China resume negotiations after Trump's controversial statement
(Baonghean) - Negotiators from the United States and China held their first face-to-face talks on July 31 since agreeing to a ceasefire in their trade war last month. But the brief meeting in Shanghai was overshadowed by a Twitter tirade from President Donald Trump.
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| US-China trade negotiations resumed on July 31. Photo: AFP |
Washington and Beijing have so far levied tariffs on more than $360 billion worth of two-way trade, in a dispute centered on demands that China crack down on alleged theft of American technology and provide a level playing field for American companies.
US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin shook hands and exchanged pleasantries with Chinese Vice Premier Liu He on the morning of July 31. The group of negotiators then went into a private room, conversing for about four hours in the first round of face-to-face talks since Trump agreed to a truce with his counterpart Xi Jinping in June.
The talks were brief and the negotiating team left earlier than expected for a group photo before US trade officials arrived at the airport and did not respond to press inquiries.
Lighthizer and Mnuchin arrived in Shanghai on July 30 for dinner and informal talks with Chinese officials, while Trump used Twitter to criticize what he called Beijing’s unwillingness to make a fair deal. The US leader asserted that Beijing should start buying American agricultural products but “there is no indication that they are doing so.” “My team is negotiating with them, but they always change the deal at the last minute to their advantage,” Trump wrote.
Trump had previously accused China of breaking its commitment when negotiations failed in May, and many believed his tweets had made the reconciliation process more difficult.
A commentary in China’s People’s Daily on July 31 complained that, as the talks began, “the drumbeats of a few Americans were heard on the sidelines, ruining the main melody.”
