Trump says he has spoken to China's Xi since presidential inauguration

WASHINGTON - US President Donald Trump said he had spoken to Chinese President Xi Jinping since taking office on Jan 20, but did not offer details on the topics of their conversation.

Mr Trump made the comments in an interview aired on Fox News on Feb 10.

“Yeah… I have talked to him and I have talked to his people, too,” he said when asked if he has spoken to the Chinese leader since the US president’s inauguration.

“We have a very good personal relationship.”

The president did not provide details on when exactly the call happened or what was discussed.

Mr Trump said last week

he was in no hurry to speak to Mr Xi to try to defuse a new trade war

between the world's two largest economies. A conversation between the two is seen as crucial to a potential easing or delay of trade tariffs.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Mr Trump's interview to Fox News.

Mr Trump and Mr Xi had spoken just before Mr Trump took office

in January and discussed issues including TikTok, trade and Taiwan.

When asked at a regular news conference on Feb 11 to confirm the call mentioned by Mr Trump, the Chinese foreign ministry did not directly comment on it, instead referring reporters to the “scheduled” call before Mr Trump took office.

“On Jan 17, President Xi Jinping had a scheduled phone call with US President Trump, and the Chinese side has already released the relevant press release,” Mr Guo Jiakun, a ministry spokesman, told reporters.

China imposed targeted tariffs on US imports

last week and put several companies, including Alphabet's Google, on notice for possible sanctions, in a measured response to Mr Trump's across-the-board 10 per cent duties, which had come on top of prior tariffs.

Washington and Beijing have had tense relations for years over differences ranging from trade tariffs and cyber security to Taiwan, Hong Kong, human rights and the origins of Covid-19. REUTERS