Trump says working with Xi to save telecom giant ZTE

US President Donald Trump said Sunday he was working with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping to prevent telecom giant ZTE from going out of business after it was hit by an American technology sales ban.

“President Xi of China, and I, are working together to give massive Chinese phone company, ZTE, a way to get back into business, fast,” Trump said on Twitter.

“Too many jobs in China lost. Commerce Department has been instructed to get it done!”

ZTE announced last week that its major operations had “ceased” following the imposition of a ban by the Trump administration of American sales of critical technology to the company, raising the possibility of its collapse.

ZTE depended on American chips and other components, and is unable to continue operating without key supplies.

US officials imposed the ban last month, saying ZTE failed to abide by an agreement to stop selling to Iran and North Korea.

While the US and China have threatened each other with trade tariffs, Trump has insisted that relations between Washington and Beijing have never been better and he has been working closely with Xi in efforts to persuade North Korea to abandon its nuclear program. (AFP)