Trade talks in Beijing; CCDI Plenum; Sinicizing Islam; Grassroots officials; BRI

The US delegation arrived in Beijing Sunday and I think there is some reason for optimism about the US-China trade talks. My understanding is that in December the Chinese side did not really offer anything new or significant, but was told to expect that would change with the convening of the Central Economic Work Conference and the December Politburo meeting.

Liu He dropped in on the first day of the meetings, as you can see from these photos that were going around WeChat: