‘Maintain momentum in ties’: Xi, Trump hold phone call; discuss US-China bilateral cooperation, Taiwan
Chinese leader Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump discussed bilateral cooperation and the issue of Taiwan in a phone call on Monday, according to China’s state news agency Xinhua. Xi said the two countries should “maintain momentum in ties” following their meeting last month in South Korea, and “stressed that Taiwan’s return to China is an important part of the post-war international order,” Xinhua reported.
The call follows a trade truce reached last month between the world’s two largest economies, under which Washington reduced tariffs on some Chinese goods and Beijing lifted select restrictions on rare earth exports.“I’ll be going to China in April and he’ll be coming here sometime after that, whether it’s in Florida, Palm Beach or Washington, DC,” Trump had said. Earlier this month, Trump said he plans to visit China in April next year, calling his recent talks with President Xi Jinping “a great success.” He added that Xi is expected to visit the United States “some time after that.”After the meeting, Trump announced that US tariffs on Chinese goods would be reduced from 57 percent to 47 percent, describing it as a move toward easing trade tensions. He said China would resume immediate purchases of American soybeans and that the dispute over rare earth exports had been resolved, with Beijing assuring there would be no further restrictions or delays. Trump also said Xi had pledged to step up efforts to curb fentanyl shipments.
