Trump is a 'go' on meeting with China's Xi, Bessent tells CNBC
US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping at their bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Osaka on Jun 29, 2019. (Photo: AFP/Brendan Smialowski)
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump is ready to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping and officials from both countries are working to set up a meeting, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Wednesday (Oct 15).
Bessent told CNBC that the US did not want to escalate a conflict with China, and did not want to decouple from the second-largest economy in the world.
He said it was due to the trust between Trump and Xi that the trade conflict between the two countries has not escalated further.
The leaders of the world's two biggest economies are expected to meet at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit starting later this month.
But Trump last week threatened to cancel the planned meeting with Xi after China unveiled fresh controls on the export of rare earth technologies and items.
Bessent maintained that "President Trump is a 'go' on that," stressing to CNBC that both leaders have "an excellent relationship".
The US and China are holding working-level talks as well on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank's annual meetings, Bessent added.
"I'm optimistic. We are now communicating at (a) very high level," Bessent said at an event organised by CNBC. "There have been many outreaches."
