Robert Lighthizer, U.S. trade representative, speaks during a Senate Finance Committee hearing in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, June 18, 2019.
Andrew Harrer | Bloomberg | Getty Images
U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said Wednesday that he will be speaking with a Chinese official before President Donald Trump meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the upcoming G-20 summit.
But it’s still unclear when the currently stalled trade negotiations between the two economic superpowers will restart, Lighthizer said.
“I have a conversation set up with my counterpart on the telephone in the next day and a half, and then I expect to meet with him with [Treasury Secretary Steven] Mnuchin in Osaka before the president meets” with Xi, Lighthizer testified before the House Ways and Means Committee.
Trump announced in a tweet Tuesday that he would have an “extended meeting” with Xi at the summit, which is scheduled for June 28-29 in Osaka, Japan. Xi confirmed the plans to Chinese state media soon after.
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