TOKYO, August 3. /TASS/. China may use US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi's trip to Taiwan as a leverage to put pressure on Washington and get concessions on tariff reduction for Chinese goods and lifting of export restrictions, Kazuto Suzuki, a professor at the University of Tokyo and an expert at the Tokyo Foundation, told a TASS correspondent.
"Practically, China can use this affair as leverage to make the US to concede some issues such as reducing tariffs [on goods] or removing some export restrictive measures," he said, noting that this is important for Chinese President Xi Jinping in view of the upcoming 20th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party and "he needs some sort of gain from this affair."
Under former US President Donald Trump, Washington levied customs duties on about $370 billion worth of goods supplied to the United States by China. Current President Joe Biden and other administration officials have repeatedly confirmed recently that they are studying the possibility of eliminating some customs duties on goods and services exported by China to the United States. The Politico newspaper, citing sources, reported that the US administration could waive $10 billion in duties on Chinese exports.
Pelosi arrived in Taiwan on Tuesday. This is the first visit of an American politician of such rank to the island in 25 years. Beijing has repeatedly warned the American side that if the visit takes place, it will not go without consequences, and China will take tough measures.