China has reached an agreement with the United States to cut tariffs on $30 billion worth of goods and to hold dialogue on artificial intelligence, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Monday, as quoted by Reuters. The agreements are part of an eight-point consensus reached during Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to Washington.
According to Beijing, the two sides also agreed to set up a trade council and expand on what was agreed during previous talks in Kuala Lumpur.
The announcement follows a decision to extend a trade truce that was due to expire on November 10 by two months. US Treasury Secretary Scott Besant said on Wednesday that this would provide more time to work on a possible broader trade agreement.
A three-day meeting between Xi and US President Donald Trump ended on Friday. According to Reuters, it was marked more by personal diplomacy than by major public breakthroughs. Xi returned to Beijing, the Xinhua news agency reported today.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi described the visit as historic and said it had strengthened the stability of bilateral relations and would have a long-term impact on world peace and development.
In the area of artificial intelligence, China and the United States have agreed to hold talks on the risks and benefits of the technology, with the next round scheduled for November. It is also planned to establish a communication channel for incidents related to artificial intelligence, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said.
In a separate statement, the ministry welcomed Washington's use of the term "superintelligence" instead of "artificial intelligence". According to it, the development of the technology requires increased exchanges and consensus-seeking between the two sides in line with new trends.
Beijing and Washington have also agreed to provide each other with mutual support in organizing the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and G-20 summits. The two leaders plan to participate in the events hosted by the other side.
On foreign policy issues, Xi and Trump agreed that Iran must fulfill its commitment not to develop nuclear weapons. According to the Chinese ministry, they also supported the position that no country or organization should impose transit fees on international waterways.
The U.S. Embassy in Beijing did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.