US and China officials meet ahead of possible talks between Xi Jinping and Donald Trump
- Working-level contact between the two countries resumes after months of silence
- Beijing visit includes industry-related government meetings
A US trade official met with his Chinese counterpart in Beijing last week, in a sign that working-level contact between the two nations has resumed despite rising tensions, ahead of a possible summit next month between their leaders.
Alan Turley, deputy assistant secretary on China and Mongolia in the US Commerce Department, also met US business representatives during his visit, according to the US embassy in Beijing and other sources familiar with the situation.
A US embassy spokesman said Turley was in the region primarily to accompany a trade mission of US companies to Mongolia, and had stopped in Beijing on his return to meet companies and have industry-related government meetings.
Other sources said Turley landed in Beijing last Wednesday night and departed on Friday, and also met with Chinese economists and think tanks.
Turley was part of the US delegation which attended the 2017 Belt and Road summit in Beijing. He was also a member of the US negotiating team which visited Beijing in May.
Working level contact has been on hold for months as the US and China have exchanged tit-for-tat punitive tariffs, one US source said.