Trump Says He Is Set to Go to China in Spring Following Phone Conversation with President Xi

Placeholder Leaders in Discussion

President Donald Trump has stated that he will go to Beijing in the month of April and asked Chinese President Xi Jinping for a state visit next year, following a telephone conversation between the two leaders.

Trump and Xi—who convened recently in Korea—discussed a variety of topics including trade, the Ukraine conflict, synthetic drugs, and Taiwan, per the former president and China's foreign ministry.

"The U.S.-China ties is very robust!" Trump posted in a social media update.

China's state news agency published a comment that said both nations should "continue advancing, proceed in the correct path on the basis of fairness, mutual respect and mutual benefit".

Prior Engagement and Economic Agreements

The officials met in Busan, South Korea in the fall, subsequently they settled on a pause on tariffs. The U.S. government opted to cut a 20% tariff by 50% targeting the flow of fentanyl.

Duties remain on imports and stand at nearly 50 percent.

"Since then, the bilateral relations has generally maintained a stable and upward path, and this is greeted positively by the each side and the international community at large," the Beijing's announcement said.

  • The United States then retracted a potential imposition of 100% additional tariffs on products, while the Chinese government delayed its scheme to enforce its latest round of rare earth export controls.

Commerce Discussions

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that the phone discussion with Xi—which took around 60 minutes—was mainly about commerce.

"We are pleased with what we've witnessed from the Chinese, and they share that sentiment," she noted.

Broader Topics

In addition to talking about economic matters, Xi and Trump raised the subjects of the conflict in Ukraine and Taiwan.

Xi informed Trump that the island's "reunification with China" is critical for Beijing's perspective for the "global system after conflicts".

Beijing has been engaged in a diplomatic battle with Tokyo, a US ally, over the enduring "uncertain policy" on the control of Taiwan.

Earlier this month, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi commented that any assault from Beijing on Taiwan could lead to a response from Japan's forces.

Trump, though, did not discuss the Taiwan issue in his online message about the discussion.

The U.S. representative in Japan, George Glass, previously said that the US supports Japan in the context of China's "pressure".

Shane Smith
Shane Smith

A passionate environmental technologist and writer, dedicated to exploring how innovation can drive sustainability and positive change.