CHINA/TRADE DEALS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Trump defended his administration’s approach to resolving a trade war with China in a series of tweets Monday [5-21-18], following three-days of negotiations with the Chinese that ended with little clarity. Mr. Trump, in an early morning tweet, initially questioned why Democrats and the previous administration did not ‘do something about Trade with China’ before touting his administration’s ability to get the Chinese to make concessions…However, much remains unresolved, including how much — and what — the Chinese will actually agree to purchase and whether the country will make other changes that the administration has been pushing for, such as relaxing restrictions on American companies operating in China. After three days of talks that concluded on Saturday [5-19-18], China and the United States issued a vague joint statement saying that China would increase its purchase of American goods and services and that talks would continue in China to flesh out the details. On Monday, administration officials fanned out on TV to talk up the state of trade negotiations but acknowledged much remains up in the air and undecided.”
-Eileen Sullivan and Alan Rappeport, “Trump Defends Administration’s Trade Strategy With China,” The New York Times online, May 21, 2018