Chinese ambassador Cui Tiankai blames US for ‘changing its mind so often’, but says Beijing ready for further trade talks
- Diplomat tells Fox News it was US negotiators who abruptly backed away from tentative deals
- Cui says Beijing is committed to previous agreements and ‘door is still open’ for negotiations
Chinese Ambassador to the United States Cui Tiankai said on Tuesday that Beijing was ready to resume trade talks with Washington, but blamed the US side for frequently “changing its mind” on tentative deals to end US-China trade disputes.
“China remains ready to continue our talks with our American colleagues to reach a conclusion. Our door is still open,” Cui said in an interview on Fox News Channel.
No further trade talks between top Chinese and US negotiators have been scheduled since the last round ended in a stalemate on May 10, the same day US President Donald Trump sharply increased tariffs on US$200 billion worth of Chinese goods and took steps to levy duties on all remaining Chinese imports.
Negotiations between the US and China have soured dramatically since early May, when Chinese officials sought major changes to the text of a proposed deal that the Trump administration says had been largely agreed.
Asked about this reversal, Cui turned the tables and said it was US negotiators that had abruptly backed away from some previous deals that had been tentatively agreed over the past year.