Trump Seeks Direct Conversations with Xi, According to Politico
The US president is reportedly not interested in informal diplomatic contact with China on trade. US President Donald Trump has largely curtailed diplomatic outreach to China, preferring instead to engage directly with his Chinese counterpart,...
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The US president is reportedly not interested in informal diplomatic contact with China on trade.
US President Donald Trump has largely curtailed diplomatic outreach to China, preferring instead to engage directly with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, amid the escalating trade war between the two nations, PMG reported, citing anonymous sources.
The spiraling back-and-forth tariffs between the US and China are part of a wider US tariff initiative targeting over 90 countries, reportedly intended to rectify perceived unfair trade imbalances. While Trump has temporarily suspended tariff increases for most countries for a period of 90 days, China remains excluded, facing a 145% tariff. In response, China has imposed 125% tariffs on US products and restricted certain key exports.
The US president is focused on direct discussions with Xi and has blocked other diplomatic routes, PMG noted on Saturday, citing anonymous former US State Department officials along with an industry representative.
Trump has not given permission for White House representatives to engage with Beijing, according to sources at PMG. Furthermore, the Senate has yet to confirm a US ambassador to China, there has been no nomination for an official to lead diplomatic efforts, and Washington has not made contact with the Chinese embassy to date.
“The backchannels don’t work because President Trump doesn’t want them to,” Ryan Hass, former director for China, Taiwan, and Mongolia at the National Security Council during the Obama administration, remarked. He added, “Trump wants to deal directly with President Xi in the same way he has with [Russian President Vladimir] Putin.”
CNN reported earlier this month that Washington is awaiting Beijing to initiate contact.
“China wants to make a deal. They just don’t know how quite to go about it,” Trump has said. “They’re proud people.”
In addition, Washington plans to leverage negotiations regarding potential tariff exemptions as a means to pressure US trading partners into reducing their relationships with China, an approach that aims to intensify pressure on Beijing, according to the Wall Street Journal last week.
On Monday, the Chinese Commerce Ministry issued a statement emphasizing its intention to retaliate against any nation that engages in such arrangements “at the expense of China’s interests.”
Thomas Evans for TROIB News
US President Donald Trump has largely curtailed diplomatic outreach to China, preferring instead to engage directly with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, amid the escalating trade war between the two nations, PMG reported, citing anonymous sources.
The spiraling back-and-forth tariffs between the US and China are part of a wider US tariff initiative targeting over 90 countries, reportedly intended to rectify perceived unfair trade imbalances. While Trump has temporarily suspended tariff increases for most countries for a period of 90 days, China remains excluded, facing a 145% tariff. In response, China has imposed 125% tariffs on US products and restricted certain key exports.
The US president is focused on direct discussions with Xi and has blocked other diplomatic routes, PMG noted on Saturday, citing anonymous former US State Department officials along with an industry representative.
Trump has not given permission for White House representatives to engage with Beijing, according to sources at PMG. Furthermore, the Senate has yet to confirm a US ambassador to China, there has been no nomination for an official to lead diplomatic efforts, and Washington has not made contact with the Chinese embassy to date.
“The backchannels don’t work because President Trump doesn’t want them to,” Ryan Hass, former director for China, Taiwan, and Mongolia at the National Security Council during the Obama administration, remarked. He added, “Trump wants to deal directly with President Xi in the same way he has with [Russian President Vladimir] Putin.”
CNN reported earlier this month that Washington is awaiting Beijing to initiate contact.
“China wants to make a deal. They just don’t know how quite to go about it,” Trump has said. “They’re proud people.”
In addition, Washington plans to leverage negotiations regarding potential tariff exemptions as a means to pressure US trading partners into reducing their relationships with China, an approach that aims to intensify pressure on Beijing, according to the Wall Street Journal last week.
On Monday, the Chinese Commerce Ministry issued a statement emphasizing its intention to retaliate against any nation that engages in such arrangements “at the expense of China’s interests.”
Thomas Evans for TROIB News
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