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Former President Donald Trump has declared that he plans to go to the Chinese capital in April and extended an invitation to Chinese President Xi Jinping for a state visit in the coming year, subsequent to a phone call between the two heads of state.

Trump and Xi—who held talks nearly a month ago in the Republic of Korea—discussed a series of matters including trade, Russia's invasion of Ukraine, synthetic drugs, and Taiwan, according to the former president and China's foreign ministry.

"The U.S.-China ties is very robust!" Trump stated in a online message.

Official Chinese media published a comment that noted both nations should "maintain progress, keep moving forward in the correct path on the basis of equality, mutual respect and mutual benefit".

Previous Meeting and Economic Agreements

The officials convened in Busan, South Korea in the fall, subsequently they reached a ceasefire on tariffs. The United States chose to reduce a 20 percent duty by 50% targeting the supply of fentanyl.

Tariffs continue on imports and average nearly 50 percent.

"From that point, the bilateral relations has mostly kept a stable and upward path, and this is welcomed by the both nations and the wider global audience," the official comment noted.

• The United States then retracted a threat of 100% additional tariffs on products, while Beijing delayed its plan to enforce its recent phase of restrictions on rare earths.

Economic Emphasis

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stated that the recent conversation with Xi—which lasted about an hour—was centered on trade.

"We are pleased with what we've seen from the Chinese, and they agree," she said.

Wider Discussions

In addition to talking about economic matters, Xi and Trump discussed the issues of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the island.

Xi informed Trump that the island's "return to China" is vital for the Chinese outlook for the "post-war international order".

China has been involved in a foreign policy clash with Japan, a US ally, over the longstanding "uncertain policy" on the authority of the independently administered island.

Earlier this month, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi stated that any Chinese attack on Taiwan could force a reaction by Tokyo's army.

Trump, though, did not refer to the island in his Truth Social post about the discussion.

America's envoy to Tokyo, George Glass, had earlier stated that the U.S. government supports Japan in the context of Beijing's "pressure".