CHINA/IRAN/SANCTIONS/TRADE DEALS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “A senior administration official said on Friday [12-7-18] that the United States had repeatedly warned Huawei, one of China’s flagship technology firms, about violating American sanctions on Iran before the arrest Saturday [12-8-18] of one of its top executives…The arrest, which was executed by Canadian authorities in Vancouver, has threatened to further complicate the trade conflict between the United States and China as they try to resolve their differences during a 90-day truce. Mr. Kudlow tried to play down any impact on those discussions, saying that the arrest of Meng Wanzhou, Huawei’s chief financial officer, was a separate matter that should have no bearing on economic negotiations. President Trump and the Chinese leader, Xi Jinping, agreed last Saturday to the 90-day trade truce, during which time there would be no additional tariffs as the two sides talk…Mr. Kudlow said he remained optimistic that China’s car tariffs would ‘come down rapidly’ and that Mr. Xi would make good on commitments made to Mr. Trump.”
–Alan Rappeport, “Trump Administration Defends Arrest of Huawei Executive,” The New York Times online, December 7, 2018