Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump held a telephonic conversation on Wednesday. The call came hours after Xi spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to Chinese state media.
After the call, Trump confirmed on Truth Social that he had an “excellent” telephone conversation with Xi Jinping, describing it as long and detailed. He said the two leaders discussed a wide range of issues, including trade, military matters, Taiwan, the war between Russia and Ukraine, Iran, and his planned April trip to China, which the President said he was “very much” looking forward to.
Trump also said the talks covered China’s purchase of US oil, gas and agricultural products, including soybeans, as well as airplane engine deliveries. Calling the discussions “all very positive,” Trump said his relationship with Xi was “an extremely good one” and said he expected “many positive results” in ties with China over the next three years.
Trump-Xi call comes ahead of China visit
The call between Xi and Trump comes ahead of an expected visit by Trump to China, possibly as soon as April. The two leaders are expected to meet multiple times this year. Xi and Trump last spoke by phone in late November, after which Trump described relations with China as “extremely strong.”
Relations between the world’s two largest economies had been strained last year after Trump imposed tariffs on Chinese goods, triggering retaliation from Beijing. Those tensions eased after Xi and Trump met in October on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit in South Korea.
During that meeting, the two leaders agreed to scale back tariffs and crack down on the flow of fentanyl and other illicit drugs into the United States. A fragile one-year trade truce followed, helping calm global financial markets that had been shaken by fears of an economic downturn.
Kremlin was informed in advance
The Kremlin said it knew about the planned conversation between Xi and Trump beforehand. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed this while speaking to Interfax news agency.
“Yes, we were aware of this in advance,” Peskov said, responding to a question on whether the Chinese president had informed Putin about plans to hold a conversation with Trump on Wednesday.
Earlier in the day, the Kremlin said Putin had accepted an invitation from Xi to visit China in the first half of this year.
Xi and Putin held a video call on Wednesday to discuss closer economic cooperation between China and Russia and their respective ties with the United States. During the call, Putin said Russia strongly supports China on key global issues.
“I would like to once again assure you of firm support for our shared efforts to ensure the sovereignty and security of our countries, our socio-economic welfare and the right to choose our own development path,” Putin said in remarks broadcast by Russian state television.
Xi said the two leaders would discuss plans for developing bilateral ties and “exchange views on major strategic issues.” He added that both countries need to “use a historic opportunity to continue deepening strategic cooperation.”