Trump reported talking to Xi Jinping after inauguration

U.S. President Donald Trump said on February 10 that he had a conversation with Xi Jinping, chairman of the People's Republic of China (PRC), after his inauguration.

"I had a conversation with him," he said in an interview with Fox News television.

Trump noted that he had a "good personal relationship" with the Chinese leader.

In addition, the American president did not directly answer the question whether he would go to the summit of the Group of Twenty (G20), which is scheduled for 2025 in Johannesburg in the Republic of South Africa (RSA). However, he emphasized the danger of the situation in the region.

"The situation in South Africa is very, very dangerous and very bad for a lot of people. Unbelievably terrible things are happening there, including confiscation of property. And even worse, much worse, you know what I'm talking about, and we're not going to make any payments until we find out what's going on in South Africa," Trump said when asked about plans to attend the country's 2025 G20 events.

Dragon tariffs: how China's duties on US LNG will change global flows

The PRC considers its moves to be fair and reasonable

Earlier, on January 17, Trump held a phone conversation with Xi Jinping. The American president emphasized that the conversation was equally useful for both sides. According to the Chinese leader, the conversation is of great importance in building bilateral relations between the countries as "two leading world powers". On the same day, it became known that the Chinese leader will skip Trump's inauguration.

Further talks between the heads of the United States and China were announced on February 4. As the South China Morning Post(SCMP) wrote on Feb. 7, Trump gave several mixed signals during the week that he would meet with his Chinese counterpart in the near future.

Prior to that, on Feb. 1, Trump signed an executive order imposing trade tariffs of 25 percent on goods from Canada, China and Mexico. Then he also promised to impose duties on goods from the EU. With this decision, Trump seeks to reduce the flow of the opioid fentanyl across the border, as well as the flow of migrants.

In response, the State Council of the People's Republic of China on February 4 reported that from February 10, China imposes duties of 15% on coal and liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the United States. In addition, it was noted that tariffs of 10% will be imposed on U.S. oil, multi-cylinder cars, pickup trucks and agricultural machinery.

On February 6, the South China Morning Post noted that Trump has given several mixed signals that he and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping are to meet soon for talks that have not taken place so far. As experts noted, this attitude toward diplomacy is "part of Trump's personal style."