WASHINGTON/BEIJING – The United States (US) and China are close to agreement on the first phase of a trade deal, US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday.
Trump said Washington was in the “final throes” of work on a deal that would defuse a 16-month trade war with Beijing, but also underscored Washington’s support for protesters in Hong Kong, a potential huge sore point with China.
China said it had summoned US Ambassador Terry Branstad on Monday to protest the passage in the US Congress of the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, saying the bill amounted to interference in a Chinese internal matter.
“We’re in the final throes of a very important deal, and I guess you could say one of the most important deals in trade ever. It’s going very well but at the same time we want to see it go well in Hong Kong,” Trump told reporters at the White House.
He said had a very good relationship with Chinese President Xi Jinping, expected him to ensure a positive outcome in the Chinese-ruled city of Hong Kong, where pro-democracy parties won almost 90 percent of 452 district council seats in Sunday’s elections.
“I think that President Xi can make that happen. I know him and I know he’d like to make it happen,” Trump said, without elaborating on what exactly he expected Xi to do. (Reuters)
