Trump is pushing for a phone call with Xi Jinping to resolve trade issues, but experts doubt it will lead to a breakthrough

Donald Trump is pressing hard for a call with Xi Jinping, hoping that a direct conversation can somehow patch the broken lines of U.S.-China trade talks, which have stalled again.

According to Politico, officials inside the White House say the call is “likely” this week. Trump is pushing for this as a personal fix, convinced he can solve what months of official negotiations haven’t.

“The president is obsessed with having a call with Xi,” said someone familiar with how Trump thinks about the trade war. Trump wants to go face-to-face—well, voice-to-voice—with Xi, confident he can straighten out a $600 billion trade relationship on the brink of collapse.

Biden-era deals falter under Trump’s new term

Right now, Washington is in a corner. There’s growing concern over China cutting off exports of critical materials—stuff like rare earth minerals used in everything from EVs and smartphones to fighter jets.

One person close to the discussions said, “I don’t think Xi is too interested in exporting any more rare earths or magnets to the United States, he’s made his position clear.” That same person admitted Xi would “likely” take Trump’s call, but only to listen. “The president has some leverage,” they added, “and the question is when he’s ready to impose maximum pressure on the Chinese government.”

Kevin Hassett, head of the National Economic Council, backed the White House’s claim that the leaders might talk this week. But as of now, the call isn’t scheduled.

Press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Monday that a conversation was still expected. But when reporters asked China’s Foreign Ministry about it, spokesperson Lin Jian said, “I have no information to share on that.”

Trump’s team has tried this play before. Since his second term began, aides have been saying a call is coming. In April, Trump even hinted they’d already spoken—though there was never confirmation. But Beijing is watching closely.

China doesn’t love how Trump turns White House meetings into media moments. Past visits with Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy and South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa were front-and-center for the press. That’s one reason China’s leadership is hesitant.

Trade deals collapse, fentanyl talks ignored

A deal was reached in Geneva earlier this year between U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer. Both sides agreed to slash tariffs and reopen access to mineral exports.

That 90-day plan is barely breathing. Greer told CNBC, “When they agreed in Geneva to remove their tariff and their countermeasures, they removed the tariff like we did. But some of the countermeasures, they’ve slowed on.” Chinese shipments haven’t resumed fully, and the U.S. says Beijing is dragging its feet.

That’s triggered panic among automakers, who rely on rare earth magnets for basic vehicle parts like transmissions and airbags. Some are warning they’ll have to pause production if shipments don’t resume in the next few weeks.

But minerals aren’t the only battle. Trump originally launched this trade war over China’s ties to fentanyl production. In February, China made two proposals to help cut off chemical flows to Mexican drug cartels. But Washington ghosted them.

Many in Trump’s circle say they don’t trust China to actually enforce any fentanyl agreement. And the feeling is mutual. Chinese officials were caught off guard when the Commerce Department, less than 24 hours after the Geneva agreement, issued new warnings to U.S. companies not to use chips made by Chinese tech giant Huawei.

Beijing also slammed U.S. moves targeting Chinese students in American universities, saying Washington is trying to stir up more “economic and trade frictions.” On Monday, China’s Commerce Ministry said the U.S. was the one destabilizing things, not them.

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