Joe Biden says he won’t quickly remove phase-one tariffs on China
Biden told New York Times he wouldn’t immediately scupper the trade agreement that President Donald Trump reached with China earlier this year.
President-elect Joe Biden told the New York Times he’d leave the phase-one trade deal with China in place while he conducts a full review of the US’s policy toward China in consultation with key allies.
Speaking to columnist Thomas Friedman, Biden said he wouldn’t immediately scupper the trade agreement that President Donald Trump reached with China earlier this year.
Also Read | William Barr disputes Donald Trump’s claims of election fraud
“I’m not going to make any immediate moves, and the same applies to the tariffs,” Biden said, according to the report. “I’m not going to prejudice my options.”
Biden told Friedman he would first conduct a full review of the phase-one deal and consult with traditional allies in Asia and Europe “so we can develop a coherent strategy.”
“The best China strategy, I think, is one which gets every one of our -- or at least what used to be our -- allies on the same page,” Biden said. “It’s going to be a major priority for me in the opening weeks of my presidency to try to get us back on the same page with our allies.”