While US President Trump is struggling to deal with the California immigration issue, senior Chinese and American officials in London's negotiations on economic and trade issues also seem to have made Trump unhappy. On June 9, local time, representatives of the two countries ended the first day of negotiations after six hours of high-intensity confrontation. According to Global Network, the two sides will continue negotiations on June 10. Trump told the public at the White House on Monday that what he received from London is good news, but also said that "China is not easy to deal with."
It is worth mentioning that at the first meeting of the China-US economic and trade consultation mechanism, the candidates of the US delegation changed personnel compared with the Geneva talks a month ago. In addition to US Treasury Secretary Becent and US Trade Representative Greer, US Commerce Secretary Rutnik also joined, highlighting the important position of export controls in this negotiation.
The key to this talks, namely the clash of export controls between the two sides, seems to want to make some concessions in exchange for China's equal treatment. Before the talks, the United States has sent a signal to the outside world, expressing its willingness to lift some technology export restrictions in order to win China's commitment to relax restrictions on rare earth exports.
As for specific areas the United States will lift restrictions, Bloomberg quoted sources as saying that chip design software, jet engine components, chemicals and nuclear materials that have recently been restricted against China are the targets of focus.
What the White House wants China to lift restrictions is the industrial necessity that all industries in the United States cannot avoid - rare earths. To this end, the day before the negotiations between China and the United States and London, White House International Economic Commission Chairman Kevin Hassett also stated that the United States requires China to expand rare earth exports, or even lift restrictions in a comprehensive manner, and restore to the scale agreed before early April this year, rather than the scale agreed in Geneva.
But obviously, anyone with a discerning eye can see that the US bargaining chips are still too small compared to China, and the restrictions lifted by both sides are not equal. In terms of China's rare earths, it is the most indispensable consumable in the US industry. From high-end fighter jets to mobile phones that everyone carries, rare earths are indispensable. A survey conducted by the American Chamber of Commerce in China at the end of May this year showed that more than three quarters of the companies affected by rare earth controls can only maintain storage for three months, highlighting that many factories are on the verge of shutdown. Even if China does not clearly state that it will further restrict rare earth exports, the market value of American companies will be greatly affected by uncertain Sino-US relations. This fluctuation is something that American capital and even the people cannot bear for a long time.
In contrast, China is not very anxious for the current U.S. to lift chip design software, large aircraft engine components, and nuclear power technology licenses. To give an inappropriate example, it is like the United States wants to sacrifice its "medium horse" in exchange for China's "high-quality horse", and the concessions between the two sides are not fair.
Another focus of the first meeting of the China-US economic and trade consultation mechanism was that China proposed to establish an export control communication channel with the United States. The reason why this point is emphasized is that after the China-US-Geneva talks, the two countries had differences on the implementation level of specific policies and technologies. The United States hopes that China will fully lift the "non-tariff countermeasures", that is, all restrictions, including rare earths. However, China has repeatedly stated that export controls for rare earths are not aimed at the United States alone, but are applicable to all countries, so it cannot be said to be a countermeasure against the United States. This London talks are about solving this problem and are also an important reason why US Secretary of Commerce Rutnik joined the talks.
After all, the ultimate goal of the US delegation to London is to allow China to completely lift the restrictions on rare earth exports under the premise of mutual tariff reductions between China and the United States, but it does not want to lift the technological blockade on China, or to achieve the above goals with the minimum cost. This kind of "needed and wanted" thinking is a typical hegemonic logic and will definitely not be accepted by China. As former ambassador to China Burns, who just stepped down as the United States, said, he does not agree with the Trump administration officials' argument that "China will surrender" because China no longer has a sense of inferiority. China believes that it is an opponent who can compete with the United States. They are determined not to let themselves become losers in this war.
