China announces it is ready for trade talks with US
A top Chinese diplomat yesterday, while addressing a press conference in Washington, said China has kept its door open for trade talks with the US, as the two top global economies are locked in a trade war. China's State Councilor, Yang Jiechi, said, "According to the US-China Business Council, trade and economic relations with China create as many as 6mn jobs in this country."
Trade war: China, US hitting tariffs on each other's goods
China and the US are currently locked in an ongoing trade war as each country has introduced tariffs on goods traded between each other. Trump has promised to fix China's "longtime abuse of the broken international system and unfair practices".
Trade issues can be resolved through dialogue and consultation: Yang
Asserting that China-US trade is critical to the world economy, Yang said as part and parcel of the global industrial chain, the economic relations help allocate resources globally. He said the trade-issues are due to different economic structures and development stages in the two countries. "They can be resolved through dialogue and consultation," he said, adding that trade war will only hurt both countries.
'US seeks constructive result-oriented relationship with China grounded in fairness'
Yang, regarded as one of the foremost contemporary architects of China's foreign policy further, said, "The Chinese side has kept the channel of dialogue and door to negotiations open." To this, US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, while interacting with the media, said, "Trump has made it clear that US seeks a constructive and result-oriented relationship with China grounded in fairness, reciprocity, and respect."
Pompeo also hoped for China's cooperation over US-Iran oil issues
Along with Pompeo, US Defense Secretary James Mattis and China's Minister of National Defense Wei Fenghe were also present at the press conference. Pompeo said the US also hoped for cooperation from China and its energy companies to address Iran's nuclear missile programs.
US hits Iran with sanctions, penalties on countries buying Iranian-oil
The US on November 5 imposed "the toughest ever" sanctions on Iran. The sanctions cover Iran's banking and energy sectors and reinstate penalties for countries and companies in Europe, Asia and elsewhere that don't halt Iranian oil imports. However, it temporarily allowed India, China, and five other major importers to continue buying Iranian oil as they showed "significant reduction" in the oil purchase.
China supports US-North Korea dialogue on denuclearization: Yang
Meanwhile, Pompeo added that despite the differences between the US and China, the latter's cooperation remains essential on many, many central issues. Citing an example, he said the two sides should remain united "in pursuit of a final, fully-verified denuclearization of North Korea". Yang said China supports the US-North Korea dialogue and hope that the two sides will advance the denuclearization process.
Trump, Xi to meet later this month in Argentina
Yang said China is committed to peace and development in the Asia-Pacific and respect the US's interest in the region. However, he added China expects the US to respect China's security and development interests in the Asia-Pacific. Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping are scheduled to meet in Argentina later this month on the sidelines of the G-20 Summit.
