China “took note” of Washington’s clarifications of the reasons for Trump’s request to postpone his visit

China announced on Tuesday that it “took note” of clarifications provided by the United States regarding the reasons for President Donald Trump’s request to postpone his visit to Beijing, indicating that it is still in contact with the US administration regarding this visit.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said during a regular press conference, “We took note that the American side has publicly clarified the inaccurate information published by the media,” noting that “the visit has absolutely nothing to do with the issue of freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.”

Lin Jian remained silent regarding the possibility of postponing the visit, which Beijing has not yet confirmed and which is supposed to take place between March 31 and April 2, according to what the White House said.
He said, “China and the United States are in communication regarding the timetable for President Trump’s visit and other issues.”

In statements he made to the Financial Times on Sunday, the US President mentioned the possibility of postponing his trip to China if Beijing did not help facilitate navigation in the Strait of Hormuz. He said Monday that he asked China to postpone the visit “about a month,” given his need to remain in the United States due to the war in the Middle East.