评论：美国关税威胁或令美中贸易谈判计划搁浅

BEIJING—The White House’s surprise decision to move forward with tariffs and other sanctions against China threatens to derail trade talks scheduled for this weekend, according to people with knowledge of the matter on both sides.

据美中知情人士称，白宫出人意料地决定推进针对中国的关税和其他制裁措施，这一决定可能令定于本周末举行的美中贸易谈判搁浅。

A U.S. advance team was scheduled to arrive in Beijing Wednesday afternoon, the people said, ahead of Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross’s planned arrival on Saturday. Members of the U.S. team, consisting of staffers from the Commerce, Treasury, Agriculture and Energy departments and the office of the U.S. Trade Representative, are set to meet with their Chinese counterparts to hammer out broad outlines of the talks, they said.

知情人士称，美国先遣团定于周三下午抵达北京，美国商务部长罗斯(Wilbur Ross)拟于周六抵京。美国先遣团成员包括商务部、财政部、农业部、能源部以及美国贸易代表办公室的人员。知情人士称，先遣团将与中方代表会面，敲定贸易谈判的总体框架。

But if the two sides fail to reach accord about issues to be discussed, Mr. Ross’s trip could be canceled, the people said.

不过，知情人士称，如果双方未能就拟讨论的问题达成一致，罗斯访华之行可能会被取消。

The Trump administration sent a sudden, harsh message to Beijing Tuesday, saying the U.S. is moving forward with its threat to apply tariffs on Chinese imports and restrict China’s access to sensitive U.S. technology.

特朗普(Donald Trump)政府周二突然向中方释放强硬信号，宣布正在推进对中国进口商品加征关税并限制中方获得美国敏感技术的计划。

With Mr. Ross scheduled to head to Beijing later this week, the administration’s latest tack could give the U.S. added leverage as the trade talks with China resume, U.S.-China experts say.

美中关系专家表示，美国商务部长罗斯将于本周晚些时候前往北京，美国政府此时做出上述举动，可能会令美方在两国继续进行贸易谈判期间增加自己的筹码。

“It is fundamentally a negotiating step,” Mr. Ross said at a news conference. “I don’t necessarily think that it will affect the overall sentiment.”

Ross在新闻发布会上表示：“这从根本上看是一个谈判步骤，我并不认为此举会影响整体氛围。”

Secretary Ross is scheduled to lead an interagency team trying to secure a deal by which China would buy more U.S. farm and energy products. In negotiations in Washington this month, a Chinese team led by Liu He, President Xi Jinping’s economic envoy, agreed to work with their U.S. counterparts on narrowing the trade gap, though it didn’t commit to any numerical targets.

美国商务部长罗斯将率领一个跨部门团队访华，试图就中国购买更多美国农产品和能源产品达成协议。在本月华盛顿进行的谈判中，中国国家主席习近平的经济特使刘鹤率领的谈判团同意与美方一道努力收窄美国对华贸易逆差，不过没有就任何数字目标做出承诺。

William Zarit, the chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in China, said that the Trump administration is approaching diplomacy and negotiations differently than its predecessors. “It would be hard to say that there is a lot of clarity, but I think it’s mostly negotiating tactics that we are seeing on the side of the U.S.”

中国美国商会主席蔡瑞德(William Zarit)称，特朗普政府的外交和谈判策略不同于其前任。蔡瑞德称，很难说形势明朗，但他认为美方的做法只是一种谈判技巧。

Mr. Zarit added that rising trade tensions have affected its member companies, forcing them to reconsider their supply chains against the possibility that materials and products they use are hit by tariffs.

蔡瑞德还称，贸易紧张局势升温已对美国商会成员公司造成影响，在其所使用的材料和产品可能受到关税冲击的情况下，成员公司被迫重新考虑供应链。