Donald Trump has sought to cool tensions with China by claiming Xi Jinping “had a bad moment” when announcing new export controls on rare earths and critical minerals.

US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s latest tit-for-tat showdown has both countries claiming the ball is now in the other’s court, with the clock ticking toward another escalation in import tariffs.

US President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that he will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping in about four weeks. The talks are expected to focus on soybeans, he said. In a post on his social media platform Truth Social,

U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday said there no reason to meet with China's President Xi JinPing in two weeks in South Korea as planned, adding in a Truth Social post that the U.S. is calculating a massive increase in tariffs on Chinese imports.

Speaking to reporters, Trump said he had not officially cancelled the meeting with Xi, but expressed his shock at China's new export restrictions requiring export licenses for rare earth elements.