US President Donald Trump said he’d prefer not to have to impose tariffs on China, his latest dovish remark toward the world’s second-biggest economy even as he continues to threaten sweeping action.
“We have one very big power over China, and that’s tariffs, and they don’t want them,” the US leader told Fox News host Sean Hannity in an interview that aired Thursday in the US. “And I’d rather not have to use it. But it’s a tremendous power over China.”
Trump has wielded tariffs as a frequent threat against friends and adversaries, and for the US promised additional revenue from them would help fund his domestic priorities. The US leader threatened on his second day in office to put 10% tariffs on China as soon as Feb 1 for allowing fentanyl to “pour” into America.
Trump also reiterated his admiration for China and its leader Xi Jinping during the interview, saying he was “like my friend” and that a recent call with him “went fine”. “It was a good, friendly conversation,” Trump said.
“I had a great relationship with him prior to Covid,” he added. “They are a very ambitious country. He’s a very ambitious man.”
‘Smart guy’
See also: Trump vows tariffs to hit Saturday with more in coming months
Trump also had praise for Kim, saying the North Korean leader “happens to be a smart guy” and isn’t a “religious zealot” like the leaders of Iran. Trump said he plans to reach out to Kim.
While Kim hasn’t directly namechecked Trump since his election victory, state media earlier carried comments from the North Korean leader saying past talks with the US during Trump’s first term had only served to confirm Washington’s “unchangeable” hostility toward North Korea.
Trump had harsher words for Russia’s Vladimir Putin, threatening “massive” tariffs and big new sanctions if he didn’t settle the war. “I don’t want to do that, but we’ve got to get this war ended,” Trump said.
Trump also criticised Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s handling of the initial stages of the conflict, saying he’s “no angel”.
