(AFP) – Top economic officials from the United States and China are set to convene in Paris, the Treasury Department said Thursday, ahead of President Donald Trump’s planned meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in April. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will meet Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in France between March 15 and 16, the department said. US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer is also expected to attend the talks, his office confirmed to AFP.
“Thanks to the bonds of mutual respect between President Trump and President Xi, the trade and economic dialogue between the United States and China is moving forward,” Bessent said in a statement. The gathering of Bessent, Greer, and He is widely expected to set the stage for Trump’s visit to Beijing, where he is due to meet Xi. The talks are likely meant to hammer out trade and economic achievements to be announced at the leaders’ summit, Fudan University professor Wu Xinbo told AFP.
But they come after a turbulent year in US-China economic ties since Trump returned to the presidency. Washington and Beijing engaged in an escalating tariffs war in April last year as China pushed back against Trump’s sweeping duties against trading partners. This brought their tariffs on each other’s exports to triple-digit levels, forcing trade to a halt before both sides eventually eased tensions.
Washington has announced that Trump will visit China from March 31 to April 2, although Beijing has yet to confirm those dates — in line with its usual practice. Trump and Xi last met in October in South Korea where they agreed on a year-long trade truce. Preparations for the upcoming Paris meeting are underway, and industry leaders are hoping for positive outcomes.
US-China Business Council president Sean Stein believes Trump’s visit to China is a “time for ambition” when it comes to addressing “longstanding issues with the business climate in China.” But he warned that invitations to join the delegation have yet to go out to business executives, urging for this to happen soon. Wu of Fudan University said this could take place after US-China talks in Europe, if officials wanted to avoid complications from involving business leaders too soon in the process.
For now, China’s top diplomat Wang Yi has sounded an optimistic note. “This year is indeed a big year for China-US relations,” Wang told reporters at a press briefing last Sunday. Even though Washington and Beijing “cannot change each other,” he said, “we can change the way we interact with each other.” He also urged the United States to iron out its differences with Beijing as both sides lock horns on tariffs and geopolitical issues. In his statement on Thursday, Bessent vowed to “deliver results that put America’s farmers, workers, and businesses first.” – Beiyi SEOW
© 2024 AFP
