JAKARTA – President Donald Trump has denied China’s claims that the two nations are not engaged in trade talks, amidst the ongoing tariff war between them.

“They had a meeting this morning,” Trump told reporters, without specifying who represented the United States in the discussions.

“It doesn’t matter who ‘they’ are. We might reveal it later, but they had a meeting this morning, and we’ve been meeting with China,” he added.

In contrast, China insists that no such talks are taking place.

As reported by ntd.com on Thursday (24 April), Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun stated during a press conference that the Trump administration’s claims of ongoing discussions were “fake news.”

Guo asserted that the two nations were not conducting consultations or negotiations on tariffs, let alone reaching any agreements.

Currently, the United States and China are in a de facto mutual trade embargo, following Trump’s imposition of 145% tariffs on Chinese goods, which prompted retaliatory tariffs of 125% from China.

Trump signalled a willingness to ease tariffs on China on 22 April, telling reporters that the United States would be “very kind” and that the final tariffs imposed on China would not approach the current 145% level.

The following day, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent clarified that Trump had not proposed unilateral reductions in US tariffs on Chinese imports, addressing speculation that the president was seeking to de-escalate trade tensions with Beijing.

Bessent predicted a near-term de-escalation, telling reporters at an event in Washington that “both sides are waiting to talk to each other.”

“I don’t think anyone believes the current tariff levels are sustainable, so I wouldn’t be surprised if they are reduced mutually,” Bessent remarked. (DK/LM)