U.S. President Donald Trump left the G7 summit Monday taking a softer tone toward China, just days after spooking financial markets with another escalation in their trade war. Yet amid all the soothing words, Trump made it clear that he wasn't abandoning his rough-and-tumble tactics to force a trade deal on China.
After spending a weekend listening to fellow Group of Seven leaders urging him to ease tensions with China, Trump pointed to recent calls and an amiable speech by China's top negotiator as signs Beijing wanted a deal. He shrugged off, however, the uncertainty his trade war has caused and showed no signs of backing down in an increasingly bitter trade dispute that's chipping away at global economic growth and sending world markets tumbling.
"It's the way I negotiate. It's done very well for me over the years. And it's doing even better for the country," Trump told reporters. Those clamoring for a deal lacked his "guts" and "wisdom," he added.