US President Donald Trump on Monday held back-to-back telephone calls with the leaders of China and Japan, signaling his desire to balance ties with Asia’s top economies as tensions rise over a Taiwan feud.
Trump’s hour-long conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) marked their first direct contact since reaching a trade truce in South Korea, after both men skipped the weekend’s G20 summit.
Xi pressed his US counterpart on the issue of Taiwan, which did not arise in last month’s encounter, Chinese state media reported.
Photo: AFP
Xi framed his view of Taiwan’s status in stark historical terms, telling Trump the nation’s “return” to China represented an essential element of the post-World War II international order.
The Chinese leader invoked their countries’ wartime alliance against fascism, urging joint efforts to “safeguard the victory of WWII.”
Hours after that conversation, Trump spoke with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who said the US leader reached out to reaffirm ties with Tokyo and update her on the situation with China, adding that she could call him any time.
Photo: AFP
Trump’s decision to speak with both leaders underscores his determination to avoid getting sucked into a spat between a key US ally and his nation’s top supplier of rare earths.
China has been pressuring nations to pick sides, writing a letter to the UN accusing Japan of contravening international law by suggesting its armed forces could be drawn into a conflict over Taiwan.
The flurry of diplomacy comes as the US’ and China’s trade teams hash out the final details of their truce.
US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent earlier this month said that a rare earths deal between the nations would “hopefully” be completed by tomorrow, although talks on key implementation details continue.
Trump characterized the call with Xi as “very good,” and said they spoke about purchases of soybeans and other agricultural products, as well as curbing shipments of illegal fentanyl.
The US president said he agreed to visit Beijing in April, and had invited Xi for a state visit to the US next year.
Beijing deliberately avoided raising Taiwan in South Korea to focus on trade and steadying ties, said Rorry Daniels, managing director at the Asia Society Policy Institute.
Takaichi’s subsequent comments about potential military intervention in a Taiwan crisis “have now prompted the full court press,” Daniels said.
“China often wants Washington to handle its friction with US allies,” Daniels said, adding that Beijing views allies as “subordinate to US direction.”
Any flare-up between the US and China could imperil a trade truce that saw Washington lower fentanyl-related tariffs on Chinese goods and Beijing agree to suspend certain restrictions on the export of rare earths.
Trump’s public statement on the Monday call with Xi sidestepped Taiwan, focusing on agricultural purchases and fentanyl cooperation.
Trump acknowledged China’s World War II contributions during the call and said the US “understands how important the Taiwan question is to China,” a Chinese readout said.
Trump’s conversation with Xi also touched on Ukraine, with China’s leader expressing support for peace efforts, and hoping parties would reach a “fair, lasting and binding” agreement.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt characterized the discussion as focused primarily on trade relations moving “in a positive direction.”
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