The president’s trade truce with China has lowered U.S. tariffs to a level that could pause a longer-term effort to reduce America’s dependence on Beijing.

A fter a months-long trade war between China and the United States, Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping are scheduled to meet Thursday in Korea. Both countries seem to be angling for a truce; over the weekend, they announced a “framework” for a possible agreement.

Tensions between the U.S. and China escalated in the weeks leading up to a possible meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. In response to recent U.S. restrictions,

China on Sunday accused the United States of espionage against the country's top time center, which China said could seriously impact the orderly functioning of its society.

The United States will "stoutly defend its interests", Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told Chinese counterpart Dong Jun during a meeting on Friday in Kuala Lumpur, flagging the importance of maintaining a balance of power in the region.

Economic relations between the two countries are more fraught than ever: in early October, for the second time in just six months, the United States and China launched a trade war, imposing prohibitive export restrictions and threatening to raise tariffs to previously unthinkable levels.

China's attempt to control rare earth minerals has failed. The United States and its allies are now finding new sources. This move has united Western nations against China's economic pressure. China's influence over rare earths is expected to decrease significantly in the coming months.

Some analysts say Beijing won a major victory in its trade talks: Getting the U.S. to withdraw a national security measure that previously was not under discussion.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines said on Saturday that its forces staged naval and air drills with counterparts from the United States, Australia and New Zealand from Thursday to Friday in the disputed South China Sea.