China confirms Xi Jinping and Donald Trump have been in touch since US election

China has confirmed for the first time that President Xi Jinping has been communicating with US president-elect Donald Trump in the lead-up to this month’s inauguration.

The news came a day after Trump told American conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt on Monday that he and Xi had already been talking through representatives and expected that they “will probably get along very well”.

When asked about those statements on Tuesday, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said that Beijing “attaches importance” to Trump’s comments.

“China and the US have maintained communication through various means,” he said.

“China stands ready to work with the US under the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation to advance the stable, healthy and sustainable growth of China-US relations for the benefit of the two countries and the world.”

It was not the first time since winning the November election that Trump had indicated he was in contact with the Chinese leader.