Washington:US President Donald Trump on Thursday canceled a planned visit later this month to World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, signaling he was prepared for political showdown over partial federal government shutdown to stretch into late January.It was unclear whether shutdown, now in its 20th day, would end before start of global economic meeting, which is scheduled for January 22 to 25.
Mr Trump and congressional Democrats are in a battle over funding for government and his long-promised wall along US-Mexico border."Because of Democrats intransigence on Border Security and great importance of Safety for our Nation, I am respectfully cancelling my very important trip to Davos, Switzerland for World Economic Forum," Mr Trump wrote on Twitter.The US president had told reporters at White House earlier on Thursday that he intended to speak at forum but would not attend if shutdown continued.The cancellation quashes any opportunity for Mr Trump to meet with other world leaders about economic issues, including trade.Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told reporters after a briefing with lawmakers on Capitol Hill that he was talking with White House about whether he would still make trip to Switzerland."My guess is if we do continue it, it will be in a scaled-back version," Mr Mnuchin said.The Trump administration is engaged in trade talks with European Union and China, among others.China and United States have agreed to a 90-day pause in implementing tariffs in order to hammer out a trade deal.China's vice president, Wang Qishan, was expected to attend Swiss meeting, but it was unclear whether any talks had been planned between him and Mr Trump.