09 November 2017•Update: 09 November 2017
By Tevfik Durul
BEIJING
U.S. President Donald Trump, in China for a state visit, on Thursday urged his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping to “work hard” and “act fast” to persuade North Korea to abandon its weapons programs.
Addressing business leaders alongside Xi in Beijing, Trump said, “Time is quickly running out. We must act fast.”
“China can fix this problem easily and quickly and I am calling on China and your great president to hopefully work on it very hard,” he added.
Trump is in the Chinese capital as part of his 12-day Asia tour, which includes Japan and South Korea.
During his speech, Trump described the U.S.-Chinese trade relationship as "a very one-sided and unfair one,” saying: “I don’t blame China.”
“After all, who can blame a country for taking advantage of another country for the benefit of their citizens?” he asked.
“I give China great credit,” Trump added. “But in actuality I do blame past administrations for allowing this out-of-control trade deficit to take place and to grow. We have to fix this.”
Trump, visiting China for the first time, also signed a trade deal valued at $250 billion with Xi.
Reporting by Tevfik Durul; Writing by Nilay Kar
