SAN FRANCISCO, Nov  17, 2023 (BSS/AFP) - The United States and China plan

further talks on commercial issues next year, the US Commerce Department said
Friday in a commitment to continue high level engagement despite tensions.

The announcement came after the US and Chinese presidents, Joe Biden and Xi
Jinping, held a summit on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic
Cooperation (APEC) forum in San Francisco this week.

US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo spoke with her Chinese counterpart Wang
Wentao on Thursday, after the Biden-Xi talks, on the countries' commercial
relationship.

"During the meeting, the two discussed progress made under the commercial
issues working group and planned to hold an in-person meeting in early 2024,"
the Commerce Department said in a statement.

Both sides would also hold technical discussions on boosting the protection
of trade secrets during proceedings next January.

Tensions between the world's two biggest economies have soared in recent
years as both sides clashed on issues ranging from human rights to export
controls.

Washington says its export curbs, which aim at reducing China's access to
advanced chips critical to the development of AI tech and cutting-edge weapons,
are a national security measure.

But Beijing has dismissed those concerns and Xi told Biden this week that
such actions hurt China's "legitimate interests."

For now, Raimondo's planned talks follow her August trip to Beijing, and
come in spite of both sides' differences.

The Commerce Department plans to work with Chinese authorities as well, to
promote ties through the revival of a tourism leadership summit scheduled to
take place in May in Xi'an.

"Secretary Raimondo also reinforced that protecting national security is
not negotiable," the Commerce Department statement said, adding that US
controls are not designed to contain China's growth.