US Treasury secretary, Steven Mnuchin, with some comments
- Phase One trade deal has very thorough enforceable mechanism
- China has agreed to put together very significant laws to follow through on its commitments
- Certain tech and cybersecurity issues will be in Phase Two of the trade deal
- Phase One trade deal is a very complicated agreement
- It is worth it even if there is no Phase Two agreement
- Huawei is not a 'chess piece' in US-China relationship
He also says that Phase Two could come in multiple steps i.e. 2A, 2B, 2C, adding that it gives China "great incentive" to come back to the table to work out unresolved issues.
Again, this likely reinforces the fact that this Phase One trade deal is but a temporary truce and one that is more of a political show to appease both sides rather than something to work towards any real progress between US-China relations as a whole.
I don't think we'll see any relevant or significant negotiations on Phase Two any time soon but perhaps both sides may surprise us. The remark on there being possibly Phase 2A, 2B, 2C etc isn't particularly encouraging and points to prolonged drama in the next few years.
