US 'optimistic' for phase 1 trade deal with China

Bangkok, Nov 5 (IANS) US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross on Tuesday said he was "optimistic" of a phase one deal in trade negotiations with China to calm global jitters over the ongoing dispute between Washington and Beijing.

Ross was in Bangkok for the three-day Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit that ended on Monday, reports Efe news.

"We're hopeful that phase one will be the precursor of a much more robust set of agreements," Ross said in a phone call with reporters on Tuesday morning.

Phase one was expected to be finalized at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Chile but due to the summit being cancelled over unrest in the country, Ross said a new time and location was now being sought.

The first-phase negotiations have been dealing with immediate trade tensions, while larger problems such as intellectual property and forced technology transfers are expected to be addressed later.

"If we resolve phase one, that will calm people down a lot because they'll see an end point is hopefully within sight," Ross added.

He defended the ongoing process, saying "it's an oversimplification to say that all trade problems arise from the US and China" and pointed to Brexit and political turmoil in Latin America as contributing factors.

Last week, US negotiators said that they were close to finalizing several sections of the pact, but they did not definitively guarantee that it would be ready to sign by the time of the APEC summit.

US President Donald Trump described the pact as the "first phase" of a process that could unfold in three phases and shelved his plans to hike tariffs on Chinese goods.

Trump was absent from the ASEAN summit and instead sent a lower-ranking delegation, including Ross and National Security Advisor Robert O'Brien on his behalf.

On Monday, seven out of 10 ASEAN country leaders skipped a meeting with the US. Only the Prime Ministers of Thailand, Vietnam and Laos attended, with the other countries sending their Foreign Ministers.

Along with Trump's immediate withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement soon after entering office, the absence of a higher delegation at the summit led many to interpret the move as a lack of interest in the region.

But during his call on Tuesday, Ross again defended Washington's involvement in the region, saying the Trans-Pacific Partnership exit was "misinterpreted" by many as the US losing interest in the region when "nothing could be further from the truth".

"We are here to stay," he said, adding that the US continues to invest in the area and highlighting bilateral trade deals with Japan and South Korea.