BEIJING (Reuters) - China’s commerce ministry said on Thursday that a phone call on Thursday with U.S. top trade negotiators went very well, adding that Beijing opposes any escalation in the trade war.

Both sides will strive to achieve real progress during high level meeting scheduled for early October, ministry spokesman Gao Feng told reporters in a weekly briefing.

China and the United States agreed to hold high-level trade talks in Washington, the ministry said earlier on Thursday, following a phone call between China’s Vice Premier Liu He and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.