#China confirms talks to review trade deal with US will happen amid COVID-19 spat

The Chinese commerce ministry on Thursday said Beijing and Washington have agreed to hold talks to review phase one of the trade deal between the countries after President Trump called off a weekend meeting over coronavirus tensions.

Ministry spokesman Gao Feng said at a weekly briefing the trade talks would occur “in the coming days.”

The confirmation comes days after White House chief of staff Mark Meadows said that despite the postponement of talks, officials from both countries are still in touch about reviewing the progress of the trade deal signed in January.

Trump, furious about the Chinese Communist Party’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, canceled the meeting scheduled for Saturday.

“I postponed talks with China,” Trump told reporters Tuesday at a border event in Yuma, Arizona. “You know why? I don’t want to deal with them now. I don’t want to deal with them now. With what they did to this country and to the world, I don’t want to talk to China right now.”

Asked if he would pull out of the trade deal, Trump said, “We’ll see what happens.”

The agreement between Washington and Beijing cut some tariffs on Chinese goods in exchange for China vowing to buy more American farm, energy and manufacturing products.

But the deal has been caught up in the deteriorating relationship between the two countries over the coronavirus response, China’s heavy-handed approach to pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong, and a dispute over Chinese tech companies that produce popular apps such as TikTok and WeChat.

With Post wires