China and the United States on Thursday morning kicked off a fresh round of high-level economic and trade talks in Washington.
The Chinese delegation is headed by Vice Premier Liu He, who also came as the special envoy of Chinese President Xi Jinping; while the U.S. team includes Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.
Liu, Lighthizer and Mnuchin co-chaired the formal opening at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building of the White House.
The Chinese attendees of the opening include Governor of the People's Bank of China Yi Gang, Chinese Ambassador to the United States Cui Tiankai, Deputy Director of the Office of the Central Commission for Financial and Economic Affairs and Vice Finance Minister Liao Min, Vice Foreign Minister Zheng Zeguang, Vice Minister of Agriculture and Rural Affairs Han Jun, Vice Minister of Commerce and Deputy China International Trade Representative Wang Shouwen, as well as Cong Liang, secretary general of the National Development and Reform Commission.
On the U.S. side, major officials attending the opening include Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, Director of the National Economic Council Larry Kudlow, and Peter Navarro, assistant to the president for trade and manufacturing policy and director of the National Trade Council, among others.
The two-day talks, the seventh round since last February, came on the heels of the previous round held in Beijing from Feb. 14 to 15, and the working-level consultations between the two sides that have started here on Tuesday.
Altogether, these discussions aim to resolve outstanding issues regarding the economic and trade relations of the worlds two largest economies, as negotiators of both sides have strived to beat a 90-day deadline that ends on March 1.
