Sky News understands that the Trump administration approached the UK government to ask if it would host round two of the US-China trade talks. This is a useful ‘diplo-win’ for the UK.
The first round was held in Geneva last month. News of that happening came as a surprise. The Chinese and the Americans were in the midst of a Trump-instigated trade war. President Trump was en route to Saudi Arabia and suddenly we got word of talks in Switzerland.
They went surprisingly well. US treasury secretary Scott Bessent and his Chinese counterpart He Lifeng, met face-to-face and agreed to suspend most tariffs for 90 days.
But two weeks later, the Trump administration accused Beijing of breaking the agreements reached in Geneva. Beijing threw the blame back at Washington.
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On Wednesday, Donald Trump and Xi Jinping spoke by phone. The Chinese claimed this call was at the Americans’ request. Either way, the consequence was that the talks were back on track.
“I just concluded a very good phone call with President Xi of China, discussing some of the intricacies of our recently made, and agreed to, trade deal,” President Trump said this week.
From that call came the impetus for a second round of talks. A venue was needed. In stepped the UK at short notice.
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Beyond being geographically convenient, UK government sources suggest that Britain is geopolitically in the right place right now to act as this bridge and facilitator. The UK-China relationship is in the process of a “reset”. Other locations, like Brussels or other EU capitals, would have been less workable.
Crucially too, for the UK, this is also potentially advantageous as it seeks to get its own UK-US trade agreement, to eliminate or massively reduce tariffs, over the line.
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Talks on reaching the “implementation phase” have been near-continuous since the announcement last month, but having the American principals in London is a plus. Sideline talks are possible, but even the presence of the US team in the UK is helpful.
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For all the chaos that President Trump is causing with his tariffs, he has instigated face-to-face conversations as he seeks resets. Key players are sitting down around tables – yes, to untangle the trade knots which Trump tied, but this whole episode has pulled foes together around the same table; it has forced relationships and maybe mutual understanding. That’s useful.
And for this next round, between superpowers, the UK is the host. Also useful.
