President Trump geared up for a high-stakes sit-down with Chinese President Xi Jinping Wednesday — revealing on a hot mic how long he plans to spend with Beijing’s leader.
Trump, 79, was overheard claiming during a diplomatic dinner hosted by South Korean President Lee Jae Myung that the Thursday meeting with Xi would stretch “three to four hours” — despite official guidance from the White House budgeting a little under two hours for the summit.
“We’re going to have something that’s going to be very, very satisfactory to China and to us,” Trump told leaders at the dinner. “I think it’s going to be a very good meeting. I look forward to it tomorrow morning when we meet.”
The president, who is wrapping up a three-country tour of Asia Thursday, also brushed off concerns about North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un.
“You have a neighbor that hasn’t been as nice as they could be, and I think they will be,” Trump told Lee. “I know Kim Jong Un very well, and I think things will work out very well.”
Trump earlier this week told reporters aboard Air Force One that he’d “love to meet” with Kim during his visit — recalling their surprisingly warm relationship during his first term in office.
“I got along great with Kim Jong Un,” he said at the time. “I liked him, he liked me.”
Trump, who made history in 2019 as the first US president to step on North Korean soil, has not scheduled any reunion this trip.
Trump had his most recent face-to-face meeting with Xi the same year, during the G20 summit held in Osaka, Japan.
Thursday’s meeting is likely to involve discussions over the ongoing US-China trade war, curbing Beijing’s role in the flow of illegal fentanyl into the US and excessive export controls on rare-earth minerals.Earlier on Wednesday, Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that he expected “to be lowering [tariffs on China] because I believe they can help up with the fentanyl situation.”
“They have an industry that has to do with drugs and the fentanyl has other reasons for being,” he said. “We have to get rid of it.”
Trump may also ask Xi to use his influence on Russian President Vladimir Putin to pressure the Kremlin dictator to end his war on Ukraine.
However, the US president cast doubt on the prospect of discussing other major issues between the two powers — such as the status of the island nation of Taiwan.
“I don’t know that we will even speak about Taiwan,” Trump said, adding: “Taiwan is Taiwan.”
