As Beijing and Washington battle it out in a rapidly escalating and brutal tit-for-tat tariff war, it is becoming increasingly difficult to see how the two leaders could end up at the negotiating table.
This is a moment when diplomatic backchannels could have an outsize role to play, according to observers, with some suggesting that such channels “might be the only way to go”.
US President Donald Trump’s announcement on Wednesday of another tariff hike on Chinese imports – to a total 125 per cent – even as he placed a 90-day pause on those aimed at most other countries, only deepened the rift between the two largest economies.
But speaking to reporters after the announcement, Trump also signalled that he did not expect to raise the levies on Chinese goods any higher, saying that he “can’t imagine” that happening.
“China wants to make a deal. They just don’t know how quite to go about it. You know, it’s one of those things, quite proud people,” he said.
“President Xi [Jinping] is a proud man. I know him very well. They don’t know quite how to go about it, but they’ll figure it out. They’re in the process of figuring it out.”
