Updated by Faith Barbara N Ruhinda at 1508 EAT on Thursday 5 February 2026

China’s President Xi Jinping has described Taiwan as “the most important issue” in China–US relations during a phone call with US President Donald Trump.

According to state media, Xi urged Trump to exercise “prudence” in supplying weapons to the island, emphasizing that he attached “great importance” to ties with Washington and hoped both sides could find ways to resolve their differences.
Trump described Wednesday’s conversation as “excellent” and “long and thorough.”

The call comes after a series of visits by Western leaders, including UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, to China in recent months, aimed at resetting relations with the world’s second-largest economy.

US President Donald Trump is set to visit China in April, a trip he said he “very much” looks forward to. He also noted that Beijing is considering buying 20 million tonnes of US soybeans, up from the current 12 million tonnes.

“The relationship with China, and my personal relationship with President Xi, is an extremely good one, and we both realize how important it is to keep it that way,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post.
During Wednesday’s call, Trump and Xi discussed Taiwan, the Ukraine war, the situation in Iran, and China’s purchase of US oil and gas. On Taiwan, Xi reiterated that the self-governed island is “China’s territory” and said Beijing “must safeguard [Taiwan’s] sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

“The United States must handle the issue of arms sales to Taiwan with prudence,” Xi warned. China has long vowed to “reunify” with Taiwan and has not ruled out using force to achieve that goal.

The US maintains formal diplomatic ties with Beijing rather than Taipei but is Taiwan’s most powerful ally and biggest arms supplier. In December, the Trump administration announced a major arms sale to Taiwan worth around $11 billion (£8.2 billion), including advanced rocket launchers, self-propelled howitzers, and a range of missiles. Beijing condemned the sale at the time, saying it would “accelerate the push towards a dangerous and violent situation across the Taiwan Strait.”

“Just as the United States has its concerns, China for its part also has concerns,” Xi told Trump. “If the two sides work in the same direction in the spirit of equality, respect, and mutual benefit, we can surely find ways to address each other’s concerns.”

On Thursday, Taiwan’s leader, Lai Ching-te, told reporters that relations with the US remain “rock solid” and that “all ongoing cooperation projects are continuing.”

Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump last spoke in November, when Xi extended an invitation for Trump to visit China.

Relations between the two countries have steadily improved in recent months, following last year’s tariff disputes and tensions over semiconductors and rare earth exports. While these issues remain key sticking points, tensions have eased since the leaders met in South Korea in October, where both sides agreed to de-escalate certain tariffs and relax some rare earth export controls.

Negotiators from Beijing and Washington also laid the groundwork for agreements on soybeans—allowing China to lift its import ban on US shipments—and on TikTok, which was finalised last month.
Hours before his call with Trump, Xi held a virtual meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, during which both leaders highlighted the strengthening ties between Beijing and Moscow. Russian media reported that Putin accepted Xi’s invitation to visit China in the first half of the year.

Chinese state media have framed Xi’s conversations with the two leaders as a signal to the world that China aims to remain a responsible and rational global power. A China Daily editorial said the calls demonstrated Beijing’s commitment to “continue to act as a stabilising force” amid rising confrontation and unilateralism.

“China is actively shouldering its responsibility—working together with major stakeholders to contribute to world peace and stability through responsible major-country diplomacy,” the editorial added.

It concluded that China is “showing other major players on the world stage the importance of refocusing on dialogue and coordination.”

Source: BBC

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