The United States has been presented with an offer by the Chinese government aimed at rekindling stalemated trade talks before the leaders of the two countries meet later this month at the G-20 summit in Argentina, two sources familiar with the discussions said.
One of the people briefed on the matter noted that the Chinese offer does not include a number of core White House demands which have been detailed as must-haves in trade talks with Beijing such as addressing intellectual property theft. It simply reiterates previous commitments made by Beijing, the person pointed out.
“What they are offering is not new,” this person said. “I think the two sides remain at an impasse. The channels are now open again, but there’s a lot of work to get to — whether it’s a modest de-escalation or ceasefire.”
The Chinese proposal follows a telephone conversation between Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Chinese Vice Premier Liu He on Friday to restart trade discussions ahead of an expected meeting between President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.
The United States had for some time requested that China come up with an offer before the Buenos Aires summit but it was unclear whether Beijing would make such a proposal. The person briefed said the offer now created “an opportunity for the U.S. government to respond.”
Still, the reformulated offer, which includes easing restrictions on foreign investment and eliminating requirements for joint ventures with Chinese partners in some sectors, raises the stakes over whether China and the U.S. would manage to reach a framework deal in the two weeks ahead of the G-20 summit.
“They have a lot of work to do and they’re going to have to find a way to make up for lost time,” added the person, who described the bid as not “forward-leaning enough” to lead to a positive outcome of the negotiations.
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