WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 14th July, 2020) The so-called Phase One trade deal between the United States and China is still intact, US President Donald Trump said on Monday.
"It's intact," Trump said at an event. "They are buying. Whether they buy or not, that's up to them. They are buying."
President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping signed the Phase One deal in January, paving the way for Beijing to buy more than $200 billion worth of US goods and services to make up for huge trade deficits suffered by the United States in the past. The Trump administration has also accused China of stealing US technology and other intellectual piracy, a charge Beijing denies.
While China commenced with buying some US goods and services right after concluding the trade deal, its purchases ground to a virtual halt after the outbreak of COVID-19.
The fate of the trade deal has also been in question in recent months as Trump repeatedly said he "no longer felt good" about the arrangement, due to his unhappiness with Beijing, which he accused of spreading the novel coronavirus to the United States and the world.
