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NEW YORK: US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent touted a \u201cvery successful\u201d meeting on trade and artificial intelligence with Chinese officials Sunday, adding that both sides discussed greater communication on AI threats.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cWe just had a very successful engagement with the Chinese,\u201d Bessent told reporters after the all-day meeting with Vice Premier He Lifeng.<\/p>\n The discussions, which also included top US trade official Jamieson Greer, lasted around eight hours and set the stage for possible agreements on trade, AI and other issues before a summit of the countries\u2019 top leaders.<\/p>\n US President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping are due to meet Thursday in Washington.<\/p>\n Bessent said the United States proposed a notification mechanism between the two countries for incidents like security threats.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat we discussed was setting up a mechanism. So it\u2019s going to be called the US-China AI dialogue,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019ve agreed to meet again.\u201d<\/p>\n Bessent and He also spoke one-on-one during the gathering that took place at JPMorgan Chase\u2019s headquarters in New York.<\/p>\n Chinese official Li Chenggang, who was elevated to a top-level international trade representative post shortly before the meetings, was present too.<\/p>\n Greer added that it is \u201cimperative that we are able to work together.\u201d<\/p>\n Both sides are looking to ease tensions on trade, technology and other strategic concerns.<\/p>\n These include the possible extension of a trade truce and guardrails for artificial intelligence development.<\/p>\n US officials are also looking to ensure the continued flow of rare earth magnets and critical minerals that are vital for US manufacturers.<\/p>\n Working-level meetings could continue into Monday, a source familiar with discussions earlier told AFP.<\/p>\n Previous negotiations saw China pledge purchases of US agriculture goods, and their fulfilment of the terms could also be an issue under scrutiny.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n