President Donald Trump has agreed to travel to Beijing after holding a call with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
In the pair's first call since agreeing a truce in the trade tariff war between the superpowers, the Chinese President offered Mr Trump an invitation in spring next year.
During the call on Monday morning, American and Chinese authorities confirmed Mr Trump will visit the country next April.
It is understood the call was wide-ranging but may have skirted around ongoing tensions with Taiwan.
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A representative from the White House verified that the exchange took place during the morning hours but declined to provide specifics about what was discussed.
However, just hours ago, Mr Trump wrote on Truth Social: "I just had a very good telephone call with President Xi, of China.
"We discussed many topics including Ukraine/Russia, Fentanyl, Soybeans and other Farm Products, etc.
"We have done a good, and very important, deal for our Great Farmers and it will only get better.
Donald Trump agreed to visit Beijing
|REUTERS
"Our relationship with China is extremely strong! This call was a follow up to our highly successful meeting in South Korea, three weeks ago.
"Since then, there has been significant progress on both sides in keeping our agreements current and accurate.
"Now we can set our sights on the big picture. To that end, President Xi invited me to visit Beijing in April, which I accepted, and I reciprocated where he will be my guest for a State Visit in the US later in the year.
"We agreed that it is important that we communicate often, which I look forward to doing. Thank you for your attention to this matter!"
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Donald Trump last met Xi Jinping in Busan, South Korea
|REUTERS
China’s state news agency Xinhua suggested Taiwan was also raised, which Mr Xi emphasised as being a core concern for his government.
According to Xinhua, Mr Xi stated that Taiwan's return to mainland China represents "an important part of the post-war international order".
The Chinese president framed the issue in historical terms, noting that China and the United States had been allies during the Second World War.
He urged that both nations should "jointly safeguard the victorious outcome of World War II."
Beijing regards Taiwan as its most critical red line issue with the Chinese government maintaining the self-governing island must eventually come under its control.
The telephone exchange between the two presidents took place following recent remarks from Japan's newly elected Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi regarding potential military involvement in any cross-strait conflict.
Ms Takaichi indicated that Japan's armed forces could participate if Beijing were to initiate action against Taiwan.
The Japanese leader described a potential Taiwan Strait conflict as a situation which could threaten Japan's survival and would warrant military deployment.
The Monday call followed an in-person meeting between Trump and Xi that occurred in South Korea during late October.
It marked their first face-to-face encounter since 2019.
During the October summit, both countries agreed to a year-long truce on tariffs and committed to pausing export control measures for the same period.
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