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Donald Trump on Monday raised concerns that Beijing may be seeking to derail efforts aimed at denuclearizing North Korea, but added that he was confident that Pyongyang leader Kim Jong Un will uphold his pact with the U.S. president.
"I have confidence that Kim Jong Un will honor the contract we signed &, even more importantly, our handshake. We agreed to the denuclearization of North Korea," Trump wrote on Twitter. "China, on the other hand, may be exerting negative pressure on a deal because of our posture on Chinese Trade-Hope Not!"
The visit of Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang to Germany is intended to signal that the two exporting powerhouses stand together against unilateralism and protectionism, Beijing's ambassador to the European Union said.The trade conflict between Europe, China and the United States is high on the agenda for the consultations between Li and Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin on Monday.China's Premier Li Keqiang tells Germany to open firms to Chinese investmentIn an interview with Handelsblatt newspaper, ambassador Zhang Ming warned that China and Europe were prepared to do what it takes to retaliate and show the United States that a policy of escalating trade conflict would be harmful."China has tried extensively to stop the trade conflict with the United States escalating into a trade war but it takes two hands to clap," Zhang Ming said in the interview, adding that no one would profit from a global trade conflict.The fallout from the US-China Trade war: what's at stakeThe United States and China exchanged the first salvos in what could become a protracted trade war last week, slapping tariffs on $34 billion worth of each others' goods and giving no sign of willingness to start talks aimed at a reaching a truce."The Chinese are peaceful people and I think the Europeans as well, but we must demonstrate to the trade war's initiator that its action is wrong," he said.
Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang visits Berlin with trade warning for Trump
China on Monday urged the United States to avoid actions that endanger peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait after two U.S. warships sailed through the waters, a voyage likely seen in self-ruled Taiwan as a sign of Washington's support.U.S. officials said two destroyers carried out the passage over the weekend, calling the manoeuvre a "routine transit" through international waters.It was the first trip by U.S. Navy ships through the Taiwan Strait in about a year, and comes amid heightened U.S.-China tensions as the world's two biggest economies spar in what could be a prolonged trade dispute.The ships' passage also followed a series of Chinese military drills around the island that have increased friction between Taipei and Beijing.Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said China had followed the ships' movements and had "already expressed concerns to the United States over this"."We must state, the Taiwan issue is related to Chinese sovereignty and territorial integrity," Hua told reporters at a regular news briefing in Beijing."We urge the United States to at once scrupulously abide by the one-China principle...and avoid harming China-U.S. relations and peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait," she added.Taiwan's Defense Ministry said on Saturday the situation was in accordance with regulations. There has been no further comment from Taipei on the passage of the two U.S. warships.China claims Taiwan as its own and has never renounced the use of force to bring under its control what it sees as a wayward province. Beijing regularly says Taiwan is the most sensitive issue in China's relations with the United States.Washington has no formal ties with Taiwan but is the island's main source of arms and is bound by law to help it defend itself.U.S. overtures towards Taiwan, from unveiling a new de facto embassy to passing the Taiwan Travel Act, which encourages U.S. officials to visit, have further escalated tension between Beijing and Taipei.China's hostility toward Taiwan has grown since Tsai Ing-wen from the pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party won presidential elections on the island in 2016.
China urges US to not endanger peace in the Taiwan Strait