Chinese President Xi Jinping said the country wants to reach an initial trade deal with the U.S. but also was not afraid to retaliate if need be. "We want to work for a 'phase one' agreement on the basis of mutual respect and equality," Xi said at an international forum in Beijing organized by Bloomberg. "When necessary we will fight back, but we have been working actively to try not to have a trade war. We did not initiate this trade war and this is not something we want."
He also commented that China has a “positive attitude” on the trade talks. Xi met with former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger Friday, with Xinhua reporting Xi stated that the two sides need to boost communications when it comes to strategic issues so as to avoid misunderstandings.
Chinese diplomat Wang Yi Wang Yi said on Friday the U.S. needs to meet China halfway and should promote healthy and stable development of bilateral relations.
Meanwhile, the South China Morning Post quoted Ian Bremmer of the Eurasia Group political consulting firm as saying the Hong Kong issue will not impact the trade deal provided things do not escalate. “I was with Liu He two nights ago, it was very clear to me in his level of, not confidence but certainly hopefulness, and cautious optimism that we will move to a phase one deal and that Hong Kong was not going to play into that,” Bremmer stated. "President Trump has made it clear that he is not going to talk about Hong Kong, and not allow it to interfere as long as they are discussing trade."
President Donald Trump today told Fox Business News that “We have a deal potentially, very close, he [Chinese President Xi Jinping] wants to make it much more than I want to make it, I am not anxious to make it,” As for Hong Kong, Trump said the U.S. has to “stand with Hong Kong, but I am also standing with President Xi.”
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