US-China relations: Trump confirms talks with Xi since his inauguration
US President Donald Trump said that he has spoken to his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping since his inauguration, signalling continued diplomatic engagement amid an escalating trade war.
Trump confirmed the discussions in a Super Bowl interview broadcast on Monday evening by Fox News, saying that he had communicated with both Xi and “his people”. Washington and Beijing have been locked in a tit-for-tat tariff battle.
“I happen to like him a lot, President Xi… I love talking to him,” Trump told Fox News host Bret Baier. “I’ve talked to him and I talk to his people too. His people come in all the time.”
Trump also hailed his “very good personal relationship” with Xi, saying that he knows him “probably better than just about anybody in various parts of the world”.
Trump did not disclose when exactly the conversation took place or what the two leaders discussed.