The Chinese government returned Trump’s favorite phrase by labeling him “fake news”, after the latter suggested that talks were underway between the two countries to end the tariff war he himself started.
Chinese officials have insisted that no tariff negotiations are occurring, even as President Trump — whose trade war has rattled financial markets and threatened to disrupt huge swaths of trade — suggested on Friday that he has been in touch with Xi Jinping.
— The New York Times (@nytimes.com) 2025-04-25T15:46:13.269Z
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jaikun called Trump’s repeated statements this week that China and the US would be “actively” discussing trade issues “fake news”.
Trump even said, in response to questions from reporters, that two representatives had met to begin discussions.
However, according to ABC News, he refused to reveal the identity of the participants in these alleged negotiations, while China continues to claim that Trump is telling lies.
Later, in an interview with The Times, Donald Trump maintained that discussions were underway between China and the US, going so far as to claim that President Xi had personally called him on several occasions to raise the issue.
On the Chinese side, the authorities deny that they are “actively negotiating” with the United States, claiming that no consultations or negotiations on the tariff issue are underway.
This statement strongly calls into question the progress in negotiations that Trump claims to have made.