U.S. VP Pence says Trump hopes to tackle China IP theft after 'Phase 1' deal

WASHINGTON, Oct 24 (Reuters) - U.S. Vice President Mike Pence said on Tuesday that the Trump administration is aiming to complete a 'Phase 1' deal with China on agricultural purchases next month in Chile and move on to tackle intellectual property theft issues dividing the world's two largest economies.

"President Trump believes that China want to make a deal. He remains optimistic that not only can we complete Phase 1, but that we can move on to the structural issues that I described a year ago and spoke about again today – they are the challenging issues of the reality of intellectual property theft," Mike Pence said following a speech hosted by the Wilson Center in Washington.

(Reporting by David Lawder Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)

((David.Lawder@tr.com; +1 202 354 5854; Reuters Messaging: david.lawder.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))

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