Remarks at a Luncheon With Vice Premier Liu He of China and an Exchange With Reporters

[Vice Premier Liu's remarks were joined in progress.]

Vice Premier Liu. ——Mr. President, this was personally important decision to do this in a phased fashion.

President Trump. I thought that we would do it the way other; that the more I thought about this, the better it is. It's—you can get your arms around it better the way we've done it. I like it better the way we've done it.

I just want to say this is a great day for both China and the United States. This is an agreement that people have been talking about for 40 years and never were able to get even a piece of paper signed. And we never had an agreement. And this is going to be a great agreement for both countries. It's far greater than $200 billion, and it will grow every year. It also unifies the countries.

And President Xi has been so nice as to talk about other things having to do—outside of the agreement—such as fentanyl; we're working on that.

We're going to be working very closely together on North Korea. And as I said inside, it's like a world-class chess match or poker match. We are going to work together, and we're going to work together for the benefit of our countries, but also, very importantly, for the benefit of the world.

So this is very big day for the United States. It's a very big day for China. This is a day that nobody thought could happen, and it did happen. So it's my honor to be here.

And I have to say, Mr. Vice Premier, it's been a great honor to become your friend. Thank you very much.

Vice Premier Liu. Thank you. Thank you.

Mr. President, I very much agree with your words. This is an agreement that is good for China, good for the United States, and good for the whole world.

Well, the agreement is an economic and trade agreement, but its implication goes far beyond the economic and trade field. The world today is full of uncertainties. And with this agreement, I believe it will be something that is conducive to world peace and prosperity.

Thank you very much, Mr. President.

President Trump. Thank you very much. And it's a great honor to have you. Please. Thank you.

Q. Mr. President, can we ask some questions?

President Trump. Thank you very much, everybody. Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you.

China-U.S. Relations/China-U.S. Trade

Q. What is your vision for future U.S.-China relations?

President Trump. Great. Great relationship. Q. Thank you.

President Trump. We have a great relationship. Could not be better. I would say the highest, the best that's it has ever been between China and the United States.

Q. What do you—[inaudible]?

President Trump. Our relationship is great both on trade and even in military cooperation. This will lead to so many other things. So we have a great, really, well-knit relationship, but the best it's ever been.

Q. What other areas are you going to start collaborating on?

President Trump. You have to remember, we've never had an agreement; this was like a free-for-all. This is a great agreement, and phase two will start soon.

But this was far more comprehensive than anybody thought or knew about in the press, because it covers so many other subjects, from intellectual property to currency to so many different things. So nobody knew that. Nobody really understood the deal until today, when we released it. So it's a much bigger deal than people thought. It's a tremendous step toward an unbelievable relationship.

But right now our relationship with China is the best it's ever been.

Thank you all very much. Thank you.

Q. What other areas are you interested in collaborating on? What other areas would you be interested in collaborating on?

The President's Travel Schedule

Q. When will you visit China, Mr. President?

President Trump. Soon. Soon.