President Donald Trump declined to offer details about a trade-focused phone call he apparently had with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
In an interview published Friday, Trump told Time that Xi broadly discussed what a trade compromise might look like. Trump declined to say when the call occurred, only that they had spoken many times.
“He’s called, and I don’t think that’s a sign of weakness on his behalf,” Trump said moments after saying he would not pick up the phone to initiate talks with Beijing.
Chinese government officials have maintained that there have been no trade conversations between Beijing and Washington.
“There’s a number at which they will feel comfortable, yeah, but you can’t let them make a trillion dollars from us. You can’t let them make $750 billion,” Trump said. “See, that’s really what’s not sustainable when China makes a trillion dollars, or a trillion one, when we have almost $2 trillion worth of debt, I call it a loss. Some people don’t, but a lot of it’s a loss. I say, when you have a trade deficit of $2 trillion, I consider that a loss.”
The president was questioned about his claims as he departed the White House on Friday morning to attend Pope Francis’s funeral in Rome, Italy.
“I don’t want to comment on that,” Trump said. “I’ve spoken with him many times.”
Trump later said he would give more details on the call “at the appropriate time” but wanted to “see if we can make a deal” first.
TRUMP SAYS NEW RECIPROCAL TARIFF RATES TO BE ANNOUNCED OVER NEXT 2-3 WEEKS
“We have a lot of things going on, and I think, in the end, we’re going to end up with a lot of good deals, including tariff deals and trade deals,” Trump said. “I think the tariff plan is going very well.”
In early April, Trump imposed a 145% tariff on China. However, he paused “reciprocal” tariffs on all other U.S. trading partners while trade negotiations take place.