“I think he’s going to very much surprise you on the upside,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Tuesday. “I think he’s going to — I asked him, ‘I’d like you to buy a little faster; I’d like you to buy a little more.’ And he’s more or less agreed to do that.”
Trump and Xi held an hour-long phone call on Monday to discuss trade and ongoing tensions between China and Japan over Taiwan. Trump also spoke with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi to brief her on the conversation, and the US president described that discussion as “great.”
“I think that part of the world is doing fine,” Trump said.
China and Japan have been locked in a row after Takaichi said earlier this month that a hypothetical Chinese attack on Taiwan could result in a military response from Tokyo. Beijing views the island as its own territory and has denounced Takaichi’s remarks, demanding a retraction.
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Since then, China has issued a no-travel advisory for Japan, suspended the screening of some Japanese films and banned the import of Japanese seafood. Both countries have also stepped up military drills, with China announcing patrols in the East China Sea and Japan announcing plans to deploy missiles to an area near Taiwan.
Trump’s efforts to mediate that conflict come as the US is also pushing China to settle key details of a truce struck between the leaders during their meeting last month in South Korea.
The two nations aim to agree on terms for “general licenses” that China pledged to offer for US-bound exports of rare earths and critical minerals by month’s end. Trump is also hoping to speed Chinese purchases of US soybeans after an effective boycott for most of the year in response to his expanded tariffs.