Representatives from Beijing and Washington began their economic and trade talks in Paris yesterday, paving the way for US President Donald Trump’s state visit to Beijing to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in about two weeks.
The delegations, led by US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng (何立峰), convened in Paris in the morning, China’s official news agency Xinhua reported. The White House has said that Trump would travel to China from March 31 to April 2, although Beijing has not officially confirmed it.
Bessent said on Thursday that his team would continue to deliver results that put US farmers, workers and businesses first. The US Department of the Treasury said Bessent would meet He yesterday and today.
Photo: AP
The Chinese Ministry of Commerce said on Friday that the two sides are set to discuss “trade and economic issues of mutual concern.”
Trump’s visit to China would be the first for a US president since he visited during his first term in 2017. It comes five months after the two leaders met in the South Korean city of Busan and agreed to a one-year truce in a trade war that temporarily saw tit-for-tat tariffs soar to triple digits before the two sides backed down.
Trade remains a source of tensions. The Chinese commerce ministry on Friday hit back against the Trump administration’s new trade investigation into 16 trading partners, including China. The investigation — which came after a US Supreme Court ruling struck down Trump’s sweeping global tariffs that were imposed last year — could pave the way for new tariffs.
Another issue that might come up is the Iran war, which is spiking oil prices. Trump said on Saturday that he hopes China, France, Japan, South Korea, the UK and others would send warships to keep the Strait of Hormuz “open and safe.”
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