China not ready for a Xi-Trump meet over trade war

BEIJING: Beijing is refusing to confirm whether Chinese President Xi Jinping would like to meet his US counterpart, Donald Trump, on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Japan later this month. Beijing is not sure a meeting with the top leaders would serve a purpose in the midst of a raging trade war.
"We have noticed that the US has repeatedly publicly expressed its expectation that the Chinese and US heads of state will meet during the G20 summit," the Chinese foreign ministry said on Tuesday.
There has been widespread expectation of a meeting between the leaders of the world's biggest and second-biggest economies to soften the aggressive postures adopted by them in a trade war. The dispute has affected world markets and raised fears of an international economic slowdown.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang clarified that the government had not decided whether the meeting should take place. "If there is any news in this regard, we will release it in due time," Geng said.
Trump recently said that a meeting with the Chinese President during the G20 summit in Japan had been "scheduled". He said he expected to meet Xi and would be surprised if Xi did not turn up at the meeting. "I think he is going, I haven't heard he's not," Trump told CNBC.
The two have imposed tariff hikes on goods from each other's countries, resulting in a corrosive trade war. There are widespread fears that the dispute would intensify, resulting in a further decline in the world economy.
"China does not want a trade war," the Chinese foreign ministry spokesman said, adding, "If the US is willing to negotiate on an equal footing, our doors are always open." Geng added, "If the US insists on escalating trade frictions, we will resolutely respond and fight until the end."