By DIDI TANG and PAUL WISEMAN

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. officials are launching an investigation into whether China lived up to its commitments under a 2020 trade pact that President Donald Trump described at the time as “an incredible breakthrough.’’

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The announcement Friday by U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer came the same day Trump was scheduled to head to Asia, where he said he will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping in an effort to ease trade tensions between the world’s two biggest economies.

Beijing has announced that Xi will travel to South Korea to attend a regional economic meeting and for a state visit, but it has yet to confirm that he will meet with Trump while both are in South Korea.

The possible leaders summit is highly watched as trade tensions have risen again, with both countries imposing more trade restrictions on the other and Trump threatening a new 100% tariff on China. Beijing has demanded that the U.S. not threaten new restrictions while seeking talks with China, and it’s not immediately clear how Greer’s announcement could affect the negotiations.

In starting the investigation, “the administration seems to be looking for new sources of leverage to use against Beijing, while adding another pressure point to get China to buy more U.S. soybeans as well as other goods,” said Wendy Cutler, a former U.S. trade negotiator who is now vice president at the Asia Society Policy Institute.

During his first term, Trump imposed tariffs on a wide swath of Chinese imports — and Beijing retaliated by targeting American products — in a dispute over China’s aggressive efforts to supplant U.S. technological leadership. The Americans charged that China unfairly subsidized its own tech companies, stole technology and forced U.S. and other Western companies to hand over trade secrets in return for access to the Chinese market.

The two countries held talks over two years and ultimately reached a truce that took effect in early 2020. The so-called Phase One deal called for China to dramatically step up purchases of U.S. exports, especially soybeans and other farm products. But it left tougher issues — such as China’s subsidies — for future talks.

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted trade between the two countries just as the Phase One deal went into effect. In 2022, U.S. farm exports to China did hit a record but then fell. They are down sharply this year as tensions between the two countries have escalated over a new tariff war following Trump’s return to the White House.

In fact, China has stopped buying American soybeans. It had been the top overseas market for U.S. soybean farmers.

An analysis by the Peterson Institute for International Economics shows that China purchased only 58% of the total U.S. goods and services exports in 2020 and 2021 that it had committed to buy under the agreement.

Cutler said it is “no secret that China did not live up to its obligations under the Phase One agreement, most notably its commitments to buy more U.S. goods.”

The investigation announced Friday is being carried out under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, which is meant to counter unfair trading practices by other countries. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative has scheduled a public hearing on the case for Dec. 16.

The investigation could result in additional trade sanctions on China. U.S. tariffs on Chinese products already come to 55%, including tariffs left over from Trump’s first term.

The president in early October threatened to add an additional 100% levy, possibly bringing the total to 155%, after Beijing expanded export rules on rare earth materials. However, Trump also said the triple-digit tariff would be “not sustainable.”

The St. Thomas women’s hockey team knew Friday was going to be a big-picture day as it prepared to host the Providence Friars in the inaugural event at Anderson Arena, St. Thomas’ new on-campus home for hockey and basketball.

Then the details took a little shine off a special day.

In a game that will be hard to top in terms of the number of twists and turns, the 13th-ranked Tommies rallied from a 5-2 deficit only to lose 7-6 before an announced crowd of 1,456.

“There are so many emotions, and excitement and gratitude that goes into opening a building like this,” Tommies head coach Bethany Brausen said. “Of course, you want to be on the winning side of that, and we talked about that after the game. It’s not the results we wanted, but I think it’s the information we needed about where our team is. To see them climb back in the third period gives me a lot of promise about the direction of our program this year.”

The Tommies scored four straight goals in the third period to take a 6-5 lead. The Friars pulled their goaltender in the final minute and got the equalizer with 32 seconds to play. Providence’s Reichen Kirchmair then scored midway through the 5-minute overtime — her fourth goal of the game — to drop the Tommies to 6-3-0.

“We expected a crazy game today,” Brausen said. “We’re moving into this brand new facility, energy is high, emotions are high. So, I was trying to play out what every scenario could look like. I didn’t play this one out.”

Brausen remained upbeat despite the loss.

“As we entered into the third period, I challenged our team to be a different program than we’ve ever been in the past,” she said. “ And that was a tall order under those circumstances. I am very encouraged by the response that they had.

“Over the years we’ve had good hockey teams. This is a different group now; they truly believe they’re never out of a game. When you start to get that in your locker room and on your bench, that’s when championship culture starts to develop.”

The opening of the arena coincides with Tommies teams being eligible for the NCAA postseason for the first time, signally a start of a new era in Tommies athletics.

Athletics director Phil Esten was all smiles prior to the game, proud of what the athletic department has accomplished and eager to see what tomorrow will bring.

“One of the greatest rewards for me was moving our student athletes in over the last two or three weeks,” Esten said. “The looks on their faces, the sheer joy that they had in their eyes — It’s been a long journey for them, too. They came to St. Thomas at a time we weren’t eligible for postseason and they took a chance on it, which I greatly appreciate. So the greatest reward has been that.

“Secondly, I would say that, as beautiful as this facility is, it’s more than just bricks and mortar. It’s about the memories we’re going to make here. We’re in the business of building people in personal and professional development, and how we can grow affinity for St. Thomas and make sure people have memories that last lifetimes.”

The arena, which seats 4,000 for hockey and 5,300 for basketball, became a reality in large part to a $75 million donation by Lee and Penny Anderson. A fundraising campaign eventually raised over $131 million for the project.

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The university’s decision to build on campus was met my stiff opposition from some nervy residents who were —and remain —concerned about traffic and a shortage of parking.

School officials are hopeful the two sides can more than simply co-exist.

“We’re neighbors, and it is important that we find mutually beneficial solutions,” Esten said. “I think we work together to mitigate what I think are going to be some traffic and parking concerns and challenges. Any time you go to a large event there is some traffic. We’ve been hosting football games on campus for 10 years. Last week, we had 4,200 people at O’Shaughnessy Stadium. Three weeks ago, we had 5,500 people there and parking and traffic were handled just fine.”

The building features a second ice surface, which Esten said will do more than serve as a practice site for the Tommies.

“We’re able to provide the St. Paul Capitals and other youth organizations the opportunity to play in their community,” Esten said. “So, I think this is a an asset both for college hockey and for our community. We’re going to welcome high school hockey. We’ll welcome youth hockey. We’ll welcome public skating. We’ll welcome anybody who wants to use that auxiliary ice sheet because we do think it is important to engage with the community in that way.”

By KEVIN FREKING

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration is rejecting the idea of using roughly $5 billion in contingency funds to keep food aid flowing into November amid the government shutdown, according to a Department of Agriculture memo that surfaced Friday. States temporarily covering the cost of benefits next month will not be reimbursed, the memo says.

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Democratic lawmakers and various advocacy groups have been calling on the administration to use the contingency fund to provide partial benefits into November though the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly referred to as SNAP.

But the two-page document states that “contingency funds are not legally available to cover regular benefits.”

The prospect of SNAP benefits running out as a result of the shutdown has become a major concern in the states. Lawmakers from both political parties are blaming the other for the hardship that would ensue. The program helps about 1 in 8 Americans buy groceries.

The document states that the contingency fund is reserved for such things as helping individuals in disaster areas. It cited Tropical Storm Melissa, which could become a major hurricane in the coming days, as an example of why it’s important to have funds available to mobilize quickly in the event of a disaster. The document was obtained by The Associated Press and was first reported by Axios.

The document blames Democrats for the government shutdown that began Oct. 1 and states that November SNAP benefits would be paid on time “if not for Congressional Democrats blocking government funding.”

House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries earlier Friday told reporters the administration has the resources to ensure than not a single American goes hungry on Nov. 1. He accused Republicans of “trying to weaponize hunger” and called it unconscionable.

Meanwhile, Democrats in the House and Senate have written Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins requesting that she use the contingency fund to cover the bulk of November benefits.

“Choosing not to ensure SNAP benefits reach those in need this November would be a gross dereliction of your responsibilities to the American people,” said a letter sent Friday by 214 House Democrats.

The latest department guidance on the contingency fund appears to contrast in some respects with the department’s 55-page plan for operations in the event of a shutdown. That plan stated that it’s evident Congress has intended for SNAP operations to continue since the program has been provided with multi-year contingency funds to cover state administrative expenses and to pay for participant benefits should a funding lapse occur in the middle of the fiscal year.

The department guidance that surfaced Friday says the contingency fund is not available to support the current budget year’s benefits because “the appropriations for regular benefits no longer exists.”

The shutdown began when a short-term measure to fund the government failed to advance in the Senate. The current impasse is now the second-longest on record. The administration took steps leading up to the shutdown to ensure SNAP benefits were paid in October, with states and lawmakers looking for guidance from the administration for what would happen next month.

The SNAP program is administered by the states. Officials in Louisiana, Vermont and Virginia pledged Thursday to keep food aid flowing to recipients in their states, even if the federal program is stalled because of the shutdown. Other states have explored using their own funds to prop up the program but have run into technical roadblocks.

Some states have been telling SNAP recipients to be ready for the benefits to stop. Arkansas, for example, is advising recipients to identify food pantries and other groups that might be able to help, and to ask friends and family for aid.

A free event in the North Loop neighborhood of Minneapolis on Saturday will take visitors on a journey through the Vietnam War and its lasting effects on Minnesota’s Southeast Asian and military veteran communities, organizers say.

The immersive digital exhibit, which is sponsored by the Minnesota Humanities Center and the Minnesota Historical Society, will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Royalston Square. It is part of a series of events funded by the Minnesota Legislature to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the war’s end.

“As Minnesota is home to the largest diaspora of Cambodian, Hmong, Lao, and Vietnamese people, we are grateful to work with these communities to host the first joint 50-year commemorative examination of the conflict in Southeast Asia,” MHC CEO Kevin Lindsey said in a news release. “This effort honoring Veterans and those who served is long overdue, and I hope that this joint commemoration will lead to more thoughtful tributes and spark more conversations.”

Floor to ceiling images projected onto the walls at Royalston Square will tell the stories of veterans and civilians “as they navigated war, refugee camps, and their eventual new lives in the United States,” the news release said.

The event is recommended for people no younger than 10, organizers said.

The events series sponsored by MHC and MNHS will continue next weekend with a two-day program at St. Paul’s Union Depot in Lowertown, which will include educational presentations, food and entertainment.

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