China tempers US hints that Beijing and Washington are preparing for the ‘last round’ of trade talks
- Chinese Vice-Premier Liu He will head to Washington next week for the 11th round of talks to end the trade war that has hit the global economy for almost a year
- White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders suggests meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping is closer than ever
Messages from the US camp that next week’s talks in Washington with China could be the last round of negotiations in the months-long trade war have been tempered by Beijing’s negotiators, who suggest the tactic to “generate pressure” should not be taken “seriously”.
White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said on Thursday that US President Donald Trump and Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping will decide after the negotiations between delegates next week whether to meet to finish the trade deal, implying the upcoming talks could be the last before a possible summit between the two leaders.
“Certainly I think that at the end of the day you’re gonna have to see the two leaders sit down and finalise some of the details of any major trade deal like this,” she said.
But after US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Monday before the US delegation headed to Beijing for a 10th round of talks this week that the US side expected to “either recommend to the president we have a deal or make a recommendation that we don’t” following next week’s talks, reaction from the Chinese side did not echo the seemingly fixed deadline for a conclusion.
Certainly I think that at the end of the day you’re gonna have to see the two leaders sit down and finalise some of the details of any major trade deal like this.
Taoran Notes, a social media account used by Beijing to release trade talk information and to manage domestic expectations, said the hints from the US side that next week’s 11th round of talks are a deadline is merely a trick “to increase tensions and generate pressure on the other side”.
