A White House official said Chinese President Xi Jinping is against any attempt to charge tolls for navigation in the Strait of Hormuz and is interested in buying more oil from the United States to reduce its dependence on that sea route in the future.
According to the official, Xi made these comments during his meeting with US President Donald Trump in Beijing on Thursday. The official Chinese statement about the meeting did not mention energy in the list of topics discussed by the two leaders, although it said they spoke about the Middle East.
China is the world’s largest importer of crude oil and natural gas, while the US is the largest producer of both. However, shipments between the two countries were practically halted last year, after China imposed tariffs on these commodities in response to broad duties imposed by Trump on Chinese products.
Global oil and gas supplies have come under severe pressure this year after Iran effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz in response to US and Israeli airstrikes, and threatened to charge ships fees to allow passage. The closure of the strait has halted about a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports, putting upward pressure on prices.
Since then, the US has implemented its own blockade to prevent ships from leaving the Persian Gulf. The Chinese supertanker Yuan Hua Hu appears to have crossed the blockage safely on Thursday.
According to the American official, Xi and Trump agreed that the strait needs to remain open to guarantee the free flow of energy.
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