Trump hails ‘good relationship’ with Xi and Putin at Davos, confirms April China visit

Trump hails ‘good relationship’ with Xi and Putin at Davos, confirms China visit

• Trump praised Xi Jinping and reaffirmed positive ties with Xi and Putin at Davos
• Trump plans to visit China in April, signaling renewed diplomatic engagement
• Putin accepted Trump's invite to join the Board of Peace, pending Russia's review.

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US President Donald Trump on Wednesday praised Chinese President Xi Jinping as an “incredible man” who has achieved “amazing” things, while reaffirming his long-standing positive relationships with both Xi and Russian President Vladimir Putin during his address at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

Speaking at the summit, Trump reflected on his personal rapport with the Chinese leader and said bilateral relations were disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I've always had a very good relationship with President Xi and with President Putin. President Xi of China is an incredible man. What he's done is amazing. He's highly respected by everybody. It was very severely interrupted by COVID. I used to call it the China virus, but he said, do you think you could use a different name and I decided to do that because why should we have a problem over that?” Trump said.

Trump also confirmed that he plans to visit China in April, signalling renewed diplomatic engagement between Washington and Beijing.

“I get along very well with President Xi. I'm going to go over to China in April,” he said.

Following an October phone call between the two leaders, Trump said Xi is expected to make a state visit to the United States later, underscoring what he has described previously as a strong US-China relationship.

Separately, Trump commented on his outreach to Russian President Vladimir Putin in connection with his proposed “Board of Peace” initiative aimed at addressing global conflicts. Trump said Putin had accepted an invitation to join the body after discussions held on the sidelines of the Davos meeting.

“He was invited. He’s accepted,” Trump told reporters after meeting NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.

However, Putin later said that Russia’s foreign ministry was still examining the proposal and would respond in due course, indicating that no final decision had yet been made.

The World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos has brought together global political leaders and business executives, with Trump using the platform to outline his foreign policy approach and upcoming diplomatic engagements.