AFP |
China on Tuesday did not confirm a planned face-to-face meeting between President Xi Jinping and his American counterpart Donald Trump, after the US leader threatened new tariffs against Beijing amid an escalating trade war.
Trump said a meeting with Xi has been “scheduled” during the G20 summit in Japan later this month, and that he expected the Chinese leader to attend.
Question: "Would you be personally insulted if Xi doesn't show up? Would you be insulted?"
President Trump: "No, I'm never insulted. I've learned not to be insulted." pic.twitter.com/gRnjeUaEVs
— The Hill (@thehill) June 10, 2019
“We have noticed that the US has repeatedly publicly expressed its expectation that the Chinese and US heads of state will meet during the G20 summit,” foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told a regular briefing.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang neither confirmed nor denied a meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump at the summit in Japan. China will release information "in a timely manner," Geng said. https://t.co/SlgQPahrPr #G20 pic.twitter.com/2NoSUryFk0
— Global Times (@globaltimesnews) June 11, 2019
“If there is any news in this regard, we will release it in due time.”
A Trump-Xi meeting would mark a turning point in the bruising trade dispute between the world’s two biggest economies, which has spooked markets worldwide and sparked worries about the global economy.
China’s exports to the US fell 3.2% in the first five months, while imports from the US dropped by 25.7 percent, expanding the surplus with the US by 11.9%: customs data #tradewar pic.twitter.com/SWlpEAkLiZ
— Global Times (@globaltimesnews) June 10, 2019
Negotiations to resolve the dispute stalled last month after Washington increased tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese imports, sparking retaliation from Beijing.
Trump told CNBC on Monday that he would be “surprised” if Xi did not attend the meeting.
China does not want a trade war, If the US is willing to negotiate on an equal footing, our doors are always open
“I think he’s going, I haven’t heard that he’s not,” the US president told the channel.
Asked if a no-show by Xi would lead to tariffs kicking in on a further $300 billion in Chinese imports, Trump said: “Yes it would.”
President Trump says he will raise tariffs if China's leader Xi Jinping fails to meet him at the G20 summit https://t.co/T8z9OD6wgb pic.twitter.com/s8kUBu5Rwr
— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) June 11, 2019
Trump has been trying to strongarm China into fundamental changes in trade and economic policies that he argues have for decades put the United States at an unfair disadvantage.
Beijing, meanwhile, has said that while it is willing to negotiate, it will not be bullied into compromising on its core principles.
Read more: China moves closer to Russia amidst trade war with US
“China does not want a trade war,” Geng said. “If the US is willing to negotiate on an equal footing, our doors are always open.”
“If the US insists on escalating trade frictions, we will resolutely respond and fight until the end.”
AFP with additional input by GVS news desk