Chinese President Xi Jinping warned Donald Trump against mishandling the issue of Taiwan during the U.S. president’s visit to Beijing, saying it could lead to tensions or even conflict between the two countries, according to Chinese state media.

If the Taiwan issue were handled poorly, it could place U.S.-China relations in a “very dangerous situation”, Mr Xi said during talks in the Chinese capital, state news agency Xinhua reported on Thursday.

China claims that democratically governed Taiwan is its own territory.

Beijing has long feared the island could formally declare independence, although Taiwan’s government has not pursued such a move.

Independence and peace in the Taiwan Strait were incompatible, Mr Xi said, referring to the waterway separating China and Taiwan.

Mr Xi also said Taiwan was the most important issue in relations between Beijing and Washington and that handling it properly could help preserve stability between the two powers.

The U.S. plays a key role in the Taiwan issue, including through arms sales to the island amid strong objections from Beijing.

It was not immediately clear how Mr Trump responded to Mr Xi’s remarks.

At the start of talks in Beijing, Messrs Trump and Xi struck a notably conciliatory tone.

After a welcoming ceremony with military honours at the Great Hall of the People, Mr Trump praised Mr Xi as a “great leader” and said the United States and China had a “fantastic” shared future.

“Sometimes people don’t like me saying it, but I say it anyway because it’s true,” Mr Trump said. “It’s an honour to be your friend.”

Mr Xi is due to host Mr Trump at a state banquet in the evening.

The Chinese president said he was convinced that the common interests between the United States and China outweighed their differences.

He also raised the question of whether the two countries could create a “new model for relations between great powers”.

The Chinese president referred to the ‘Thucydides Trap’, a term used to describe the risk of a dangerous rivalry between a rising power and an established leading power.

The talks are expected to focus heavily on trade after months of tensions between Washington and Beijing.

Mr Trump had previously threatened China with steep tariffs during the past year.

According to U.S. journalists, the first meeting between Messrs Trump and Xi lasted around two hours.

Chinese state media later reported that Xi met with senior U.S. business leaders who had travelled to Beijing with Mr Trump,  including Apple chief executive Tim Cook and Tesla founder Elon Musk.

Also in attendance was Jensen Huang, the head of chipmaker Nvidia, whose semiconductors are considered crucial for the development of artificial intelligence.

During the meeting, Xi reportedly said that China’s doors would open even wider and emphasised that China welcomes deeper cooperation with the United States.

The war involving Iran is also expected to feature in discussions with Washington, as China hopes to help secure the Strait of Hormuz, a key route for global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments.

Following the U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran on February 28, Tehran largely brought shipping to a standstill through threats and attacks.

China is typically the largest buyer of Iranian oil.

Messrs Trump and Xi last met in late October ahead of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in South Korea, where they agreed to a pause in the ongoing tariff dispute.

Trade issues are also likely to be discussed in their talks on Thursday.

Ahead of the meeting, Xinhua said relations between China and the U.S. were too important to fail.

On major international issues, from trade and financial markets to climate and artificial intelligence, coordination between Beijing and Washington was crucial, it said.

A single meeting would not resolve all problems, Xinhua wrote, but it could help strengthen communication and rebuild trust.

Mr Trump is set to leave China on Friday.

(dpa/NAN)