China chows on US fast food at London trade talks

New York Post

2 days ago

China's trade negotiators surrendered at the end of the second day of US trade talks in London — by feasting on American fast food, The Post has learned.
The famished Chinese delegation ordered a delivery of McDonald's, Burger King and KFC after the day-long negotiations at just after 7:30 p.m. local time, sources said.
Team Trump — featuring Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer — also turned to a fast-food option.
However, they dined on takeout from Pizza Express, a British chain specializing in handmade pizzas, the sources told The Post.
4 Chinese officials were left humiliated at the end of trade talks against Trump's team by ordering takeout made up entirely of US fast food. The president, seen above during the campaign last year, is a known aficionado of McDonald's meals.
Getty Images
One insider branded Beijing's gastronomic choices as 'a total cultural victory' for the United States, even though there was no deal announced on ending the tariff trade spat in sight.
4 The Trump administration team dined out on handmade pizzas from the British restaurant chain Pizza Express, sources said.
SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
A spokesman for China's embassy to the UK did not respond to The Post's request for comment.
The US and China meting at Lancaster House to try and build on negotiations in Geneva last month that agreed to a 90-day suspension of most of the 100%-plus tariffs they had imposed on each other in an escalating global trade war.
Lancaster House, an 18th-century mansion a stone's throw from Buckingham Palace, is close to the upmarket neighborhood of Mayfair that is home to some of the British capital's best restaurants.
The move by Chinese officials, led by Vice Premier He Lifeng, may be seen as a blow to the host country, which has repeatedly seen its culinary capabilities derided by snooty foreigners throughout history.
Insiders refused to be drawn in on whether the meals of choice for Beijing's top brass could raise the chances of success for a possible agreement with Washington.
4 Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who called the talks 'productive', has left London to appear in Congress on Wednesday.
REUTERS
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who is on the way back to DC and will debrief Congress on Wednesday, called the meeting 'productive.'
On Monday, President Trump told reporters: 'We are doing well with China. China's not easy.'
The commander-in-chief is known to be a fast food aficionado and even served diners at a McDonald's drive-thru during a campaign stop in the swing state of Pennsylvania in October.
4 Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng and his team snubbed some of London's finest restaurants on Tuesday.
REUTERS
His preferred order at the Chicago-based fast food chain is two Big Macs, two Filet-o-Fish sandwiches, and a chocolate milkshake, according to a 2017 book written by two former campaign staffers.
The 'Let Trump Be Trump: The Inside Story of His Rise to the Presidency' tome was penned by Corey Lewandowski and David Bossi.
On the table for trade talks, aside from the fast food, are the levies slapped on semiconductors that power artificial intelligence, visas for Chinese students at American universities, and rare earth minerals that are vital to carmakers and other industries.
The negotiations were sparked by the threat of Trump's so-called Liberation Day reciprocal tariffs, which he threatened to slap on countries that he believed had been treating the US unfairly.