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U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday that America would welcome 600,000 Chinese students to study at American universities, despite a months-long standoff with Beijing over tariffs.

Trump made the comments from the White House, vowing that educational exchanges with China would continue “at a very high level” even as his administration imposed new tariffs on Chinese goods and continued to threaten new limits on Beijing’s trade.

“We’re going to allow their students to come in,” Trump said. “I hear so many stories that we’re not going to allow their students. … It’s very important, 600,000 students. It’s very important. But we’re going to get along with China.”

Earlier this year, the U.S. levied a 145 percent tariff on all Chinese goods, prompting Beijing to impose a 125 percent tariff on all U.S. exports. Washington and Beijing have been locked in a tense trade negotiation for months, with both sides imposing penalties and threats.

Negotiators have reached a temporary truce: In May, they agreed in Geneva to halt new levies while the talks continued. But Trump has threatened new measures several times in recent weeks. Last week, he said he was considering a 200 percent tariff on Chinese-made magnets, of which he said Beijing “owns” the majority of the global supply.

“China, very intelligently, went and they sort of took a monopoly on the world’s magnets,” Trump said. “It’ll probably take us a year to have them.”

Trump: U.S. Colleges Will Welcome Chinese Students

His decision to welcome new Chinese students came after he had previously threatened a hardline approach to student visas for Chinese nationals. Trump also said he was increasing the number of “tourist” visas for Chinese nationals, saying they would bring money to the U.S.

In May, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said his department would be “aggressively revoking” visas for Chinese nationals, particularly those studying or working in fields linked to the Chinese Communist Party. Trump made no mention of such restrictions in his Monday comments and instead focused on the economic benefits of welcoming Chinese students.

Trump: U.S. to Welcome 600,000 Chinese Students

The U.S. is already home to about 270,000 Chinese students, according to recent figures. If Trump’s 600,000 number materializes, it could nearly double the number of Chinese students in U.S. schools.

Rubio’s May comments had sent shockwaves through the American higher-education industry, which draws significant funding from Chinese student tuition. Trump said Monday that his administration was still looking at options to control visa abuse.

Still, Trump appeared to reverse course from his position just a month ago. In June, he said that he “always favored” Chinese students attending American schools.

Chinese students bring in millions of dollars in tuition revenue to American schools each year, and Trump’s Monday comments were welcomed by the industry. “We are pleased to see President Trump once again acknowledge the vital role that international students and scholars play in furthering the values and mission of our higher education system,” the American Council on Education, a leading industry group, said in a statement.

Trump’s comments on China come just hours ahead of a scheduled meeting with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung. Trump said he would be “perfectly willing” to meet with Xi Jinping, too, should an opportunity arise.

“I would like to meet him this year,” Trump said. “We have to be talking with China. They’re a very important country, from a financial standpoint, from a lot of different standpoints.”

“I think we have a much better relationship with China now than we did before Biden,” he added. “It’s a much better relationship economically. But he allowed that. They just took him to the cleaners.”

The apparent split in the White House between Rubio and Trump comes just days after a massive review of the China Initiative at the Justice Department. The program was ended after it was criticized for targeting and deterring Chinese researchers, often through baseless accusations of espionage and economic crime.

On tariffs, Trump doubled down on new Chinese levies. He said the U.S. would be “charging China very substantial tariffs on goods coming in,” but that education could help “settle it.”

“I really believe it’s a bridge,” Trump said. “Look at the great bridge we have to China right now. It’s a very important bridge.”