‘We’ve had fantastic relationship’: Trump recalls his ties with Xi during US-China meet

During the meeting with Xi Jinping in China, Donald Trump underscored his longstanding personal relationship with Xi, saying their direct communication had helped resolve differences between the two nations over the years. Trump described the relationship as historic and praised Xi’s leadership.

Trump said, "You and I have known each other now for a long time. In fact, the longest relationship of our two countries that any President and President has had. And that's, to me, an honour. We've had a fantastic relationship. We've gotten along. When there were difficulties, we worked it out. I would call you, and you would call me. Whenever we had a problem, we worked it out very quickly, and we're going to have a fantastic future together."

Highlighting the economic agenda of his visit, Trump noted that several top American business leaders were part of his delegation and were keen to strengthen trade ties with China. Concluding his remarks, Trump struck an optimistic tone about bilateral relations, saying it was “an honour” to call Xi his friend and expressing confidence that ties between China and the United States would become “better than ever before.”

Xi on China-US meeting

In his opening remarks, Xi Jinping said the world was closely monitoring the meeting, describing the talks as a crucial moment that could shape future global stability. "Welcome back to China after 9 years. The whole world is watching our meeting. Currently, a transformation not seen in a century is accelerating across the globe, and the international situation is fluid and turbulent. The world has come to a new crossroads. Can China and the United States overcome the Thucydides trap and create a new paradigm of major country relations?" He said.

He also urged deeper cooperation between Beijing and Washington, cautioning against escalating competition between the two nations. He said, “Can we meet global challenges together and provide more stability for the world? Can we, in the interests of the well-being of our two peoples and the future of humanity, build a brighter future together for our bilateral relations? These are the questions vital to history, to the world, and to the people. They are the questions of our times that you and I need to answer as leaders of major countries... I always believe that our two countries have more common interests than differences. Success in one is an opportunity for the other. And a stable bilateral relationship is good for the world. China and the United States both stand to gain from cooperation and lose from confrontation. We should be partners, not rivals. We should help each other succeed and prosper together and find the right way for major countries to get along well with each other in the new era...”