CHINA/FOREIGN POLICY/NORTH KOREA/TRADE DEALS: “Ahead of a high-level U.S.-China security meeting in Washington, Beijing is doing its utmost to show why close trade links with China are a good thing for America, and starting with Iowa beef.
Chinese and U.S. officials are set to kick off an annual security dialogue on Wednesday [6-21-17] that will address an impasse over North Korea’s missile development and nuclear program.
On the same day, the first shipment of American beef in 14 years is scheduled to arrive in Shanghai, following a breakthrough in trade relations. Members of a recent Chinese delegation to the U.S. pointed to this and other moves as a relative bright spot in a fraught relationship.
‘The next step is to import a huge volume of agricultural goods,’ Wei Jianguo, a former Chinese trade official, said in Beijing on Monday, flagging how he said the swelling appetites of Chinese consumers could benefit the U.S. ‘Ignoring a market this big, how is that going to solve the U.S.’s problems?’ “
-Josh Chin, “U.S. Beef Is on Table Ahead of China Talks,” The Wall Street Journal online, June 19, 2017 02:23pm