ZTE is just the first of a list of trade demands that China gave to Trump
That’s according to a Washington Post opinion piece today by Josh Rogin, who writes that after a White House delegation visited China last month, the Chinese drafted a list of trade and economic demands for the U.S. One of them asked the U.S. to ease a trade ban on the telecommunications gear and handset company ZTE, which had pretty much put the Chinese company out of business. The demand list was thought to be a discussion guide for the next round of meetings between the U.S. and Chinese delegations, but The Great Negotiator surprised everybody (especially those in the State Department) by agreeing to the ZTE favor in a weekend tweet.
President Xi of China, and I, are working together to give massive Chinese phone company, ZTE, a way to get back into business, fast. Too many jobs in China lost. Commerce Department has been instructed to get it done!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 13, 2018
Suddenly all that campaign rhetoric about the Chinese being out to get the U.S.–using technology–has given way to great concern for the preservation of Chinese jobs. Here are the other demands on the list from the Chinese, according to Rogin:
(15)