Malaysia Hosts Inaugural Round of US-China Dialogue

Lebanon Today

A new round of talks between high-level officials from the United States and China kicked off today, Saturday, in an attempt to ease escalating tensions between the world’s two largest economies, ahead of an upcoming summit between the two leaders.

The Chinese news agency Xinhua reported that the meeting between the Chinese and American delegations began in the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur, early this morning.

Chinese Vice Premier of the State Council, He Lifeng, headed the Chinese side, assisted by Deputy Minister of Commerce, Li Cheng Gang, and Deputy Minister of Finance, Liao Min, while US Treasury Secretary, Scott Bisent, led the American delegation, according to Bloomberg News Agency.

Bisent and He Lifeng, a close aide to Chinese President Xi Jinping, face the daunting task of negotiating ways to ease the escalating reciprocal measures taken by the two countries recently.

This meeting aims to pave the way for possible talks next Thursday between Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Leaders’ Summit scheduled to be held in South Korea.