China’s trade negotiator says Beijing wants Donald Trump re-elected because he is ‘easy to read’

China’s former trade envoy says the nation wants Donald Trump to be re-elected because he’s ‘easy to read’ compared to other American politicians. 

Long Yongtu, the former vice-minister of foreign trade in China who aided in the country’s entry into the World Trade Organization, says Trump is easy to understand thanks to his daily, unfiltered Twitter posts. 

Trump’s vocal nature makes him ‘the best choice in an opponent for negotiations’ because he’s transparent with his agenda, Yongtu said at the Credit Suisse’s China Investment Conference on Saturday in Shenzhen. 

‘We want Trump to be re-elected; we would be glad to see that happen,’ Yongtu added according to the South China Post.  

‘He makes the US decision-making process efficient and transparent, because he basically says what it is. The pros of [having Trump] outweigh the cons. We don’t need to spend so much time figuring out what Americans want any more, or search for each other’s real thoughts in the dark, like we used to,’ he said. 

Yongtu, 76, has retired from active ministerial posts and does not speak for China’s government. However, many believe that his statements on Trump offer insight into the thinking of China’s policymakers and trade diplomacy stance, as the U.S. and China remain embroiled in a trade war. 

Long said that Trump, to his credit, is a transparent and realistic negotiator who is focused on having China import more American products. 

He says that Beijing is able to compromise on that front. 

He also noted that Trump is unlike his predecessors because he does not pick fights with Beijing on geopolitical issues such as China’s grip over Taiwan or Hong Kong. 

‘He makes the US decision-making process efficient and transparent, because he basically says what it is. The pros of [having Trump] outweigh the cons. We don’t need to spend so much time figuring out what Americans want any more, or search for each other’s real thoughts in the dark, like we used to,’ Youngtu said on Trump

‘Trump talks about material interests, not politics,’ Long said to the Post. ‘Such an opponent is the best choice for negotiations.’ 

As for the U.S.-China trade war, negotiators seem to be nearing a ceasefire. Both  nations have agreed to roll back the tariffs they imposed on each other in phases, Chinese commerce ministry spokesman Gao Feng announced Thursday. 

He added that the cancellation of tariffs is a key condition to any trade agreement, however it’s not clear when such a deal will take place. 

The trade war, which started in July 2018, has grown into disputes over technology and global finance. 

‘The trade frictions with China are just part of Trump’s global protectionist strategy,’ Long said, noting that the Trump administration withdrew from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, and imposed tariffs on the European Union, Canada and Mexico. 

On Saturday Trump said that trade talks with China were moving along ‘very nicely’ but the U.S. won’t fold unless they make a deal with Beijing that is right for America. 

‘The trade talks with China are moving along, I think, very nicely and if we make the deal that we want it will be a great deal and if it’s not a great deal, I won’t make it. I’d like to make a deal, but it’s got to be the right deal,’ Trump told reporters at Joint Base Andrews.    

‘China very much wants to make a deal. They’re having the worst year they’ve had in 57 years. Their supply chain is all broken, like an egg, they want to make a deal, perhaps they have to make a deal, I don’t know, I don’t care, that’s up to them,’ he added. 

Officials from both countries said on Thursday that China and the United States had agreed to roll back tariffs already in place on the other nation’s goods in a ‘phase one’ trade deal to end a damaging trade war.