CHINA and the United States will hold the second round of their Diplomatic and Security Dialogue in Washington on Friday, the Foreign Ministry announced.

The first round, in June 2017, also took place in the U.S. capital.

Yang Jiechi, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, will co-chair the meeting along with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said at a daily news conference Tuesday.

Yang is also the director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the CPC Central Committee.

State Councilor and Minister of National Defense Wei Fenghe will also take part in the talks.

Beijing and Washington had previously agreed in principle to hold the second round in mid-October, but the U.S. proposed putting it off, Hua said last month.

The announcement comes days after a phone conversation between President Xi Jinping and his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump, during which they discussed bilateral trade while agreeing to meet during the upcoming G20 Summit in Argentina.

On trade frictions, Hua said China and the U.S. should properly handle disputes on the basis of equality, good faith and mutual respect.

“We hope economic teams from both countries will sincerely implement the consensus reached by their leaders, increase contacts and maintain communication, and also conduct consultations on issues of mutual concern so as to reach an agreement acceptable to all.”  (China Daily)