() President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke on the phone Thursday amid rising tensions over trade disputes, according to Chinese state media.
The conversation came at the “request” of Trump, media outlet Xinhua said. The White House has not yet confirmed or commented on the talk.
Earlier this week, the White House confirmed the pair would soon speak directly. Trump said on social media that it has been difficult to negotiate with Xi.
“I like President XI of China, always have, and always will, but he is VERY TOUGH, AND EXTREMELY HARD TO MAKE A DEAL WITH!!!” Trump wrote on Wednesday.
Both countries have accused the other of violating trade agreements amid tense tariff negotiations.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent accused China of disrupting the supply chains of India and Europe, and Trump accused China of “totally” violating their 90-day agreement reached in May.
The deal slashed Trump’s sky-high tariffs on Chinese imports from 145% to 30%, while Beijing dropped its own from 125% to 10%.
On Tuesday, a spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said his country has “responsibly and faithfully” upheld its end of the agreement.
“Without any factual basis, the U.S. falsely accuses and smears China, and has taken extreme suppression measures against China such as new chip export controls, blocking EDA sales, and announcing plans to revoke Chinese students’ visas,” spokesperson Lin Jian’s statement reads in part.
‘s Robert Sherman contributed to this report.
