PALM BEACH (Florida) • United States President Donald Trump received an update on trade talks with China at his Florida retreat after discussions in Beijing saw progress ahead of a March 1 deadline for reaching a deal.
"Trade negotiators have just returned from China where the meetings on Trade were very productive. Now at meetings with me at Mar-a-Lago giving the details," the President tweeted on Saturday.
Mr Trump, at his Mar-a-Lago club, was briefed in person by US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney and trade expert Peter Navarro, said White House spokesman Sarah Sanders.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, economic adviser Larry Kudlow and other aides joined by phone.
Both the US and China reported progress in five days of negotiations in Beijing last week but the White House said much work remains to be done to force changes in Chinese trade behaviour.
At a White House press conference last Friday, Mr Trump said the talks with China were "very complicated" and that he might extend the March 1 deadline and keep tariffs on Chinese goods from rising.
US duties on US$200 billion (S$271.3 billion) worth of Chinese imports are set to rise from 10 per cent to 25 per cent if no deal is reached by March 1 to address US demands that China curb forced technology transfers and better enforce intellectual property rights.
Chinese Vice-Premier and chief trade negotiator Liu He and Mr Lighthizer are to lead the next round of talks this week in Washington.
Meanwhile, China's top diplomat Yang Jiechi expressed hope that the US would implement, along with China, the consensus reached by the two countries' leaders on advancing bilateral ties based on coordination, cooperation and stability.
When answering questions about the China-US relationship after addressing the ongoing 55th Munich Security Conference on Saturday, he said the world is faced with both opportunities and challenges, and all countries need to cooperate with each other.
Mr Yang, a member of the apex Political Bureau of the Chinese Communist Party Central Committee, said the important consensus reached by the two leaders pointed to the direction for the development of bilateral ties in the coming period.
This year marks the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between Beijing and Washington.
Mr Yang urged the US to proceed from the fundamental interests of the people and earnestly implement the important consensus reached by the two leaders.
As for China-US economic and trade differences and frictions, he said Beijing is willing to solve them through cooperation, but with principles.
He said Chinese and US business teams recently conducted intensive consultations and made important progress, and hoped that both sides will continue to make concerted efforts to push for mutually beneficial and win-win agreements.
On the trade imbalance between China and the US, Mr Yang said the causes are complex, as a large part of this is due to US export controls towards China.
Commenting on Huawei, he said the Chinese telecommunications firm has made positive contributions to the development of communication technologies in countries including those in Europe, and that it strictly abides by international rules and local laws and regulations, in line with Chinese government requirements.
China has no law requiring companies to install "back doors" or collect foreign intelligence, he added.
Mr Yang said he hoped that countries will show some confidence in their own technologies and some respect for the willingness of other countries to develop cooperation with Chinese enterprises.
Mr Yang also reiterated that China is firmly committed to the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula and the maintenance of peace and stability in North-east Asia.
He said China supports the success of the second meeting between the leaders of the US and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, referring to North Korea by its official name, and expects positive results from it.
