The US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, a trade deal with China is of secondary importance.
The President threatens to introduce new tariffs in Beijing, and his administration is developing a response to the outbreak.
Trump’s sharpened rhetoric against China reflected his growing disappointment with Beijing over the pandemic, which claimed tens of thousands of lives in the United States alone, triggered an economic downturn and jeopardized his chances of being re-elected in November.
Two representatives of the United States, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that they were discussing a number of strategies that could be used against China, but warned that efforts were in the early stages. One official told Reuters that the recommendations have not yet reached the level of a national security team or President Trump.
“There is a debate about how to hit China hard and how to properly calibrate it”, – one source said when Washington walks a tightrope in ties with Beijing, while he imports personal protective equipment (PPE) from it and fears prejudice to a sensitive trade transaction.
The Washington Post, citing two people familiar with domestic discussions, said Thursday that some officials were discussing the idea of canceling part of the huge US debt held by China as a way to strike Beijing for coronavirus invented by China (according to Trump). that adversely affected the outcome of his campaign.