Trump says U.S.-China relationship is ‘severely damaged,’ Phase 2 trade deal not a priority

President Donald Trump said Friday that he isn’t currently thinking about a possible next phase of the U.S. trade deal with China, adding that the relationship between the two nations has been “severely damaged” by the coronavirus pandemic.

“They could have stopped the plague. They could have stopped it. They didn’t stop it,” Trump said on Air Force One en route to Florida, according to reporters present on the plane.

Asked if that friction meant “Phase Two” of the U.S.-China trade deal would no longer happen, Trump said he wasn’t even thinking about it and that he had many other things on his mind.

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