On Trump's "possible" new US-China trade deal; Beijing reiterates "tariff wars produce no winners"

Addressing reporters on Air Force One on Wednesday, Trump claimed that he achieved a "great trade deal" with China during his first presidency in 2020.

"But remember, he loves China, and I love the USA. So, you know, right there, there's a little bit of competitiveness."

He also praised Xi as " a very unique person". Trump further spoke about the possibility of Xi Jinping in the White House, "We'll have, ultimately, President Xi" visiting the White House.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said on Thursday that "trade wars and tariff wars produce no winners" and harm the interests of people in all countries, as per Global Times.

Reacting to Trump's statement, Guo told reporters in Beijing that "both sides should resolve their respective concerns through dialogue and consultation based on equality and mutual respect, and China will continue to take necessary measures to resolutely safeguard its legitimate rights and interests," the Chinese state media reported.

According to a report in the New York Times, Trump has expressed interest in a deal that would include substantial investments and commitments from the Chinese to buy more American products (despite China's failure to buy an additional USD 200 billion of goods and services under the 2020 agreement). He would like an agreement to also include issues like nuclear weapons security, which he envisions ironing out man-to-man with Xi, according to his advisors.

As per the NYT, in their 2020 pact with the US, Chinese officials had pledged to open certain markets to foreign companies, better protect technology secrets and buy American crops and energy. But they never came close to meeting the purchasing targets, which Beijing said was because of the Covid pandemic.

Washington and Beijing have had tense relations for years over differences ranging from trade tariffs and cybersecurity to TikTok, Taiwan, Hong Kong, human rights among others. As per a CNN report, Trump campaigned on winning an economic competition against China, and, on his first day in office, ordered a review of the US-China economic relationship, which is due April 1.

Earlier this month, Trump imposed additional 10 per cent customs duties on all products imported from China as part of of broader trade measures also targeting Mexico and Canada. Beijing retaliated with up to 15 per cent tariffs on targeted imports from the US. It further filed a complaint with the World Trade Organization as well.

Trump also signed last week executive orders imposing new 25 per cent tariffs on steel and aluminum, which will come into effect on March 12.

Meanwhile, talking to reporters on board Air Force One on Wednesday, Trump said "there's a lot of people interested in the TikTok, and I think we have a chance of doing something good. And we'll be speaking to China about that also, because they're a party to it, obviously. But it would be great to keep TikTok alive, sell it to somebody that's going to do a great job.".

Before his inauguration as US President Donald Trump said that he agreed to "approve" TikTok on the condition that US would own 50 per cent of the Chinese app to "save" American jobs and prevent "our business" from going to the Communist nation. "We need to save TikTok because we have to save a lot of jobs. We don't want to give our business to China... I agreed to approve TikTok on the condition that the USA will own 50 per cent of TikTok..."

In January, Trump wrote on Truth Social that he and Xi would cooperate to make the world more peaceful and safe. "It is my expectation that we will solve many problems together, and starting immediately," he said. (ANI)