Trump hails ‘great success’ after talks with Xi raise hopes of easing US-China tensions
US president says trade deal will be ready ‘pretty soon’ and hails agreements on rare earths and soybeans following summit in South Korea
He confirmed he would visit China in April, adding that Xi would reciprocate with a trip to the US “some time after that”.
Thursday’s summit may help the two countries’ relationship enter a “more constructive phase” following a series of clashes over trade, according to observers, but they warned that a series of deep-rooted problems within the relationship could still derail any progress.
The 100-minute meeting was the first face-to-face encounter between the two leaders since Trump returned to the White House in January.
“Given our different national conditions, we do not always see eye to eye with each other and it is normal for the two leading economies of the world to have frictions now and then,” Xi told the US leader, according to the Chinese foreign ministry.
‘We have a deal’: Trump claims breakthrough after ‘12 out of 10’ talks with Xi Jinping