US, China hold ‘constructive talks’ in Malaysia to pave way for Trump-Xi meeting
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "US, China hold ‘constructive talks’ in Malaysia to pave way for Trump-Xi meeting")
Chinese Vice-Premier He Lifeng waves as he arrives for talks with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in Kuala Lumpur Photograph: (X)
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent met with China’s Vice Premier He Lifeng at Merdeka 118—the world’s second-tallest building—for trade negotiations. China’s top trade negotiator, Li Chenggang, is also participating in the talks.
Top officials from the United States and China claimed to have held “very constructive” talks on Saturday in Kuala Lumpur after the first day of negotiations. The two biggest economies of the world are trying to avert trade war escalation and ensure that a meeting happens next week between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit. Trump had threatened new 100% tariffs on Chinese goods and other trade curbs starting on November 1 after China announced massive export controls on rare earth magnets and minerals.
The recent flare-up disrupted the trade truce crafted by US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng after four meetings since May.
“Today’s talks have concluded. They have been very constructive, and we expect them to resume in the morning,” a US Treasury spokesman told AFP.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent met with China’s Vice Premier He Lifeng at Merdeka 118—the world’s second-tallest building.
China’s top trade negotiator, Li Chenggang, is also participating in the talks.
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The officials will try to pave the way for Trump and Xi to meet next Thursday at an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in South Korea, a high-stakes conversation that could revolve around some interim relief on tariffs, technology controls, and Chinese purchases of US soybeans.
‘We have a lot to talk about with President Xi,’ says Trump
Minutes before the talks started, Trump left Washington for his tour of Asia and said farmers, hit by a Chinese freeze on US soybean purchases, and the democratic island of Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory, would be on the list of topics for talks.
Trump also flagged the release of jailed Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai, whose arrest is viewed as a high-profile example of China’s crackdown on rights and freedoms in the Asian financial hub.
“We have a lot to talk about with President Xi, and he has a lot to talk about with us. I think we’ll have a good meeting,” Trump said.
Trump left Washington for a five-day trip to Malaysia, Japan, and South Korea, his first to the region and longest journey abroad since taking office in January.
He told reporters aboard Air Force One that he would also like China to help in Washington’s dealings with Russia.
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Both economic powers trying to avoid escalation
The two major economies are trying to avoid a return of their tariff escalation to triple-digit levels on both sides. Bessent and Greer’s first meeting with He in Geneva in May led to a 90-day truce, which brought down tariffs sharply to about 55% on the US side and 30% on the Chinese side and restarted the flow of magnets. It was extended after subsequent talks in London and Stockholm and was due to expire on November 10.
But the truce frayed by September-end, when the US Commerce Department expanded an export blacklist, banning US exports to thousands more Chinese firms.
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On October 10, China hit back with new global rare earth export controls aiming to prevent their use in military systems.
Bessent and Greer blasted China’s move as a “global supply chain power grab” and vowed the US and its allies would not accept the restrictions.
On Friday, the Trump administration announced a new tariff probe into China’s “apparent failure” to meet the terms of the 2020 US-China “Phase One” trade agreement that halted their trade war during Trump’s first term.
