Xi, Trump hold telephone conversation

Beijing, June 19 (IANS) Chinese President Xi Jinping held a telephone conversation with his US counterpart Donald Trump at the latter's request.

During the call on Tuesday, Trump said he looked forward to meeting Xi again during the upcoming Group of 20 (G20) summit in the Japanese city of Osaka later this month, and conducting in-depth discussions on bilateral ties and issues of common concern, reports Xinhua news agency.

The US side, Trump added, valued its economic and trade cooperation with China, and hoped that the teams on both sides can conduct communication, and find a way to resolve the current dispute as soon as possible.

Trump said he believed the entire world hopes to see the US and China reach an agreement.

For his part, Xi said some difficulties have recently occurred in China-US relations, which is in the interests of neither side.

Reiterating that both countries gain from cooperation and lose from confrontation, Xi said the two sides should, in accordance with the consensus he has reached with Trump, push forward the China-US relationship featuring coordination, cooperation and stability on the basis of mutual respect and mutual benefit.

As the world's two biggest economies, China and the US should jointly play a leading role in pushing for positive outcomes at the G20 Osaka summit, so as to inject confidence and vitality into the global market, added Xi.

The Chinese President said he stands ready to meet Trump in Osaka to exchange views on fundamental issues.

On economic and trade issues, Xi stressed, the two sides should solve their problems through dialogue on an equal footing, with the key being to accomodate each other's legitimate concerns, adding that China hopes the US side can treat Chinese firms in a fair manner.

Xi said he agrees to have the two countries' trade teams maintain contact on how to solve the dispute.

Following the conversation, Trump tweeted: "I've had a good phone conversation with President Xi. We will have an extensive meeting next week at the G20 in Japan. Our teams will start negotiating before our meeting."

Despite signs indicating that a deal was close to being finalized, talks fell through in May and the situation escalated after Trump raised tariffs on Chinese products - with Beijing responding in a similar manner - and the US vetoed Huawei on grounds of it being an alleged threat to national security.