U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent said on Sunday that he expects President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping to speak soon in an effort to resolve a growing dispute over critical minerals.
Speaking to CBS' Face the Nation, Bessent accused China of withholding essential materials that underpin industrial supply chains in the U.S., India, and Europe.
“What China is doing is they are holding back products that are essential for the industrial supply chains of India, of Europe. And that is not what a reliable partner does,” Bessent said.
President Trump had earlier accused Beijing of violating a mutual agreement to roll back tariffs and trade restrictions on strategic mineral exports.
“I am confident that when President Trump and Party Chairman Xi have a call, that this will be ironed out,” Bessent said, adding that China’s move may be “a glitch in the system” or something more deliberate.
Although China confirmed in April that the two leaders had not spoken recently, Bessent expressed confidence that contact is imminent.
Asked whether a call was scheduled, he responded: “I believe we’ll see something very soon.”
The dispute comes as critical minerals remain central to global energy transitions, with growing competition between major economies over supply chain control.
Iran has rejected as “irrelevant” a UN nuclear watchdog resolution referring its nuclear file to the UN Security Council, arguing that ...
Georgia’s busiest sea gateway has reached its capacity limit, adding urgency to plans for a major expansion of Poti port as the country seeks...
Overnight Iranian strikes on an air base in Jordan damaged multiple U.S. aircraft and left one without a wing, American media reported. Meanwhile, ...
Four people were killed, including a child, in Ukrainian strikes on the Russian port city of Novorossiysk overnight, according to the governor of the Krasnodar region. Ukraine's drone forces commander, Robert Brovdi, said Russian military ships were destroyed in the attacks.
Wildfires have broken out in Türkiye’s Antalya province, forcing hundreds of people to evacuate as strong winds fuelled the flames.
Overnight Iranian strikes on an air base in Jordan damaged multiple U.S. aircraft and left one without a wing, American media reported. Meanwhile, explosions were heard across parts of southern Iran according to local media reports.
A TV channel was struck during a live broadcast on Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, as Russian strikes on Kyiv killed at least three people, the city's Mayor Vitali Klitschko said. Meanwhile, drones hit civilian infrastructure in Russia's southwestern Saratov region.
U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said its forces destroyed five Iranian crude oil carriers after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) allegedly launched two ballistic missile attacks against a U.S. Navy warship over the past two days.
Ukrainian forces struck a Russian oil refinery in Siberia and a seaport in Dagestan in the past 24 hours, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. He will meet Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Thursday to discuss air defences for Ukraine over winter.
Eight Muslim-majority countries have launched a joint push for wider international action against trade linked to Israeli settlements, seeking to build momentum from new measures announced by the UK and other Western governments.
Saudi Arabia is facing a problem that goes beyond the latest Houthi attacks on its southern oil facilities. The kingdom is now dealing with pressure on energy exports at the Strait of Hormuz to the east and the Red Sea route to the west.
Two Azerbaijani sailors were killed on Wednesday when a foreign cargo ship they were travelling on was attacked by drones in the Black Sea, Baku's Foreign Ministry has said.
Iceland’s government plans to introduce legislation in February to permanently ban commercial whaling, potentially leaving Norway and Japan as the world’s only countries still allowing the practice.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment