Senior US official may raise Russia trade during Hong Kong trip next week, sources say

One person familiar with the trip arrangements said Shaw, who is deputy assistant secretary for China and Mongolia, would arrive in Hong Kong “at the end of August”.

He said Shaw would meet his counterparts in the city to discuss trade issues and try to “iron out some problems” between Hong Kong and the United States.

Scott Shaw, deputy assistant secretary for China and Mongolia at the US Department of Commerce. Photo: Handout

The visit comes about three months after the US imposed sanctions on more than a dozen companies in mainland China and Hong Kong for their alleged support of Russia’s war in Ukraine. They were among a round of nearly 300 fresh sanctions imposed in May.

In June, over 20 Hong Kong-based companies and several people associated with them were among hundreds hit by expanded US sanctions aimed at cutting off Russia’s access to international materials and equipment amid the conflict in Ukraine.

Top US officials including Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Secretary of State Antony Blinken have warned Chinese officials that they must crack down on the provision of dual-use items to Russia that the US says are being used to strengthen its military in the war. Beijing has denied the allegations.

A second source said that after visiting Hong Kong, Shaw would travel to Beijing where he would “communicate the US stance on various issues” to the Chinese government.

Beijing sent a trade delegation to Washington in April for the first US-China trade working group talks aimed at improving communication and better managing differences between the two countries.

It followed a phone call between Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Biden on April 2 – their first talks since a summit in San Francisco in November when they agreed to establish a range of working groups in an effort to ease tensions.

In Washington, the Chinese delegation led by commerce vice-minister Wang Shouwen met Marisa Lago, US undersecretary for international trade, with the two sides agreeing to strengthen communications on export control rules.

Wang raised concerns including the additional Section 301 tariffs applied to imports from China and what he called “overstretching” the concept of national security.

He also discussed US sanctions on Chinese companies, the revision of trade remedy investigation rules, two-way investment restrictions and concerns over the unfair treatment of Chinese businesses.

Commerce vice-minister Wang Shouwen led a trade delegation to Washington in April. Photo: Simon Song

The US Department of Commerce said Lago expressed concerns over restricted market access for American companies, cross-border data flows and regulatory transparency.

The two sides agreed to continue talks – with Lago set to lead a US delegation to China in the second half of this year for a second working group meeting – and to support each other’s events such as the China International Import Expo and the China-California Business Forum.

Темы и теги

Гонконг Политика