Chinese President Xi Jinping pressed President Trump on Wednesday to avoid military confrontation with North Korea, in a phone call tha…
Here’s our look at the Trump administration and the rest of Washington:
Chinese President Xi Jinping pressed President Trump on Wednesday to avoid military confrontation with North Korea, in a phone call that came after the U. S. deployed warships to the region.
Xi told Trump that China wants a denuclearized North Korea, but urged a “peaceful solution, ” according to Chinese state television. He also expressed a willingness to coordinate with the U. S.
China’s Foreign Ministry said Trump initiated the call.
The two leaders discussed North Korea face-to-face last week in Florida, and China has long pushed for talks rather than military action on its doorstep. But the latest conversation followed a series of Trump tweets on Tuesday that suggested he might bargain aspects of his trade agenda for China’s help pressuring Pyongyang.
“I explained to the President of China that a trade deal with the U. S. will be far better for them if they solve the North Korea problem!” Trump said in a tweet Tuesday morning.
He then accused North Korea of “looking for trouble” and said America would handle the threat itself if China decides not to help. He signed the tweet “U. S. A.”
Trump also told Fox News that the U. S. is “sending an armada, very powerful” to North Korea. The Pentagon redirected a Navy strike group towards the Korean Peninsula this weekend, amid fears Pyongyang is preparing for a ballistic missile launch or its sixth nuclear test.
