Scott Bessent meets China’s He Lifeng for further economic talks

He Lifeng: He Lifeng is Vice Premier of China and a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, with oversight of economic and industrial affairs. He recently led a Chinese delegation to the United States for economic and trade consultations focused on tariffs, AI, and critical minerals. In this news, he held an additional round of negotiations with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent following their weekend discussions. Scott Bessent: Scott Bessent serves as the United States Secretary of the Treasury under President Donald Trump. He has led recent US-China economic discussions, including on trade policy, AI safety mechanisms, and critical minerals, while also emerging as a leading candidate to take on an additional role overseeing US artificial intelligence policy across federal agencies. In this news, he conducted follow-up talks with his Chinese counterpart to address unfinished items from prior meetings ahead of a Trump-Xi summit. AI Dialogue: The talks have included agreements to launch bilateral communications on artificial intelligence safety incidents and national security concerns between the world's leading AI powers. Trade Negotiations: US and Chinese officials are engaged in ongoing consultations on economic issues including tariffs and non-sensitive goods trade ahead of a high-level summit between the two countries' leaders. Preparation for Summit: The meetings are designed to resolve outstanding matters and lay groundwork for agreements on strategic stability based on reciprocity and fairness between the United States and China.