HONG KONG — The leaders of the United States and China said Thursday they had spoken and were making progress toward a face-to-face meeting at the Group of 20 summit in Argentina this month that could stall — if not altogether defuse — a further buildup in trade tensions.
President Trump and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, both described their phone call in optimistic terms on Thursday, with Xi in particular emphasizing the leaders’ personal relationship even as branches of the U.S. government unveiled tougher measures and rhetoric against Beijing.
Trump said in a morning tweet that he had a “long and very good conversation” with Xi that touched on trade, just hours before the Department of Justice unsealed the latest in a series of charges against Chinese companies and individuals. The unusual slew of indictments are meant to be a stern warning to Beijing about pilfering U.S. tech secrets that, beyond the trade imbalance, represents one of Washington’s biggest grievances about Chinese commercial behavior.
Talks to arrange meetings at the G-20 were “coming along nicely,” as were discussions about North Korea, Trump said in his tweet.
In a readout that appeared in Chinese state media, Xi said he was “very happy” to talk to Trump and attached “great importance to the good relations with the President.”
China will host an import fair in Shanghai next week that Xi said will demonstrate Beijing’s commitment to “increase imports and expand openness.” The Chinese president is expected to make a major speech at the convention’s opening on Monday.
After months of fitful negotiations through intermediaries, U.S. and Chinese officials hope that a meeting of the two presidents on the sidelines of the Buenos Aires summit will yield a last-ditch breakthrough. The United States is prepared to launch tariffs on about $260 billion of Chinese imports within weeks if the G-20 meeting fails, Bloomberg reported this week.
Larry Kudlow, Trump’s top economic adviser, said at a Washington Post Live event earlier Thursday that he wasn’t sure that trade would be discussed when the two presidents meet in Argentina.
“My crystal ball is not at all clear,” Kudlow said. “The agenda is being discussed and worked on in both camps. I think it will include trade, but I’m not 100 percent sure.”
The optimistic notes on the trade talks come at a period when U.S. defense and law enforcement officials have taken a tougher stance against China. The Trump administration, which in the past two months has leveled charges in three cases against alleged Chinese spies, will ramp up an interagency effort to send a clear message to Beijing about economic espionage, officials say.
Read more:
With new indictment, U.S. launches aggressive campaign to thwart China’s economic attacks
Crossed wires: Why the U.S. and China are struggling to reach a trade deal
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