Chinese Vice Premier Says Upon Arrival To US Tariffs Provide No Solution To Trade Spat

BEIJING (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 10th May, 2019) Chinese Vice Premier Liu He, who heads the country's trade talks with the United States, upon arrival in Washington, D.C., for the negotiations, said that imposing trade tariffs was not a solution to the existing problem, expressing hope that the Chinese delegation would have open discussions with US officials during the talks.

"I arrived here with sincere intentions. I hope for a sincere exchange of opinions in this special situation. China believes that tariffs are not a way to solve this problem," Liu said.

The official emphasized that imposing duties was not beneficial neither for the United States nor for China or the rest of the world.

The United States and China have been engaged in a trade dispute since last June when US President Donald Trump announced the imposition of 25 percent tariffs on Chinese goods worth of $50 billion in a bid to fix the US-Chinese trade deficit.

Since then, the two states have exchanged several rounds of trade duties.

Over the recent months, Beijing and Washington have been engaged in talks on a new trade agreement.

However, Trump said on Wednesday that China had broken the deal with the United States. Moreover, on Monday, US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, who is leading the talks with Liu from the US side, said that over the last week, the United States had seen an erosion in commitments by China.