China’s Vice-Premier Liu He will head to Washington for the seventh round of high-level economic and trade talks on February 21-22 at the invitation of the United States, as announced by China’s Ministry of Commerce on February 19.
Liu, who is President Xi Jinping's special envoy and chief of the Chinese delegation in the China-US economic dialogue, will meet US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.
The upcoming round of talks is the latest attempt to relax trade tensions ahead of a March 1 tariff truce deadline despite remaining difference.
State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on February 19 that it is the right choice for China and the US to respect each other and enhance cooperation, adding that this is also the common expectation of the international community.
Liang Ming, a senior researcher at the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, commented, "Even though China and the US have reached more consensuses and narrowed differences during recent consultations, certain issues still remain."
In Beijing last week, China and the US had in-depth communications on topics of mutual concern, including technology transfers, intellectual property rights protection, non-tariff barriers, the service sector, agriculture, and the trade balance.
The two sides have indicated they will step up their work within the time limit for consultations set by both heads of state, and strive for consensus.