Trump says he will visit Beijing and host China’s Xi for a state visit

President Donald Trump said he has accepted an invitation from Chinese leader Xi Jinping to visit Beijing in April and that he reciprocated by inviting Mr Xi for a state visit to the US later next year.

Mr Trump made the announcement a few hours after he spoke with Mr Xi on the phone, in which he said the two men discussed issues including Ukraine, fentanyl and soybeans.

The phone call came nearly one month after the two men met in person in the South Korean city of Busan.

“Our relationship with China is extremely strong!” Mr Trump said.

Beijing, which announced the phone call first, said nothing about the state visits but said that the two leaders discussed trade, Taiwan and Ukraine.

Mr Xi told Mr Trump in the phone call that Taiwan’s return to mainland China is “an integral part of the post-war international order”, and he expressed hope for a “fair, lasting and binding peace agreement” over Ukraine, according to the Chinese foreign ministry.

The conversation came after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi recently said Japan’s military could get involved if China were to take action against Taiwan, the self-governing island that Beijing says must come under its rule.

Japan is an important ally of the US in the region. The phone call also coincided with the latest push by the Trump administration to end the war in Ukraine.

The Chinese, who in the past always pointed out that their leader picked up the call “upon request”, didn’t say such for Monday’s call.

“That means China called Trump,” said Sun Yun, director of the China programme at the Washington-based think tank Stimson Centre.

“My best guest is China is worried about the escalation (in tensions) with Japan. The reference to Taiwan and the post-WWII order directly points to the spat with Japan over Taiwan. They also talked about Ukraine. That is an issue China is interested in due to the new peace negotiation,” added Ms Yun.

The two leaders also discussed the Ukraine crisis, the Chinese side said, with Mr Xi saying the crisis should be resolved “at its root”.

The Chinese leader stressed Beijing’s support for “all efforts that are conducive to peace,” according to the statement.

However, western governments have accused Beijing of enabling the war through its industrial support for Moscow.

Mr Trump said he spoke with Mr Xi about “Fentanyl, Soybeans and other Farm Products, etc”.

“We have done a good, and very important, deal for our Great Farmers — and it will only get better,” Mr Trump wrote.

Since he met Mr Xi in Busan, “there has been significant progress on both sides in keeping our agreements current and accurate,” Mr Trump said.

In the call, Mr Xi said the bilateral relationship has “generally maintained a steady and positive trajectory” following the Busan summit, and he said the two sides should strive to make “more positive progress,” according to the Chinese foreign ministry.

It did not reveal any concrete agreements on matters such as purchases of American soybeans.