Foreign Minister Wang Yi told US Secretary of State Marco Rubio during a phone call that Beijing and Washington should "safeguard the hard-won stability" in China-US relations, the ministry said.

The talks between the two came two weeks before US President Donald Trump is expected to visit China for a high-stakes meeting with counterpart Xi Jinping.

The talks are seen as a key moment in ties between the world's top two economies, which were tense last year when the Republican billionaire returned to the White House.

"Wang Yi emphasized that the Taiwan issue concerns China's core interests and is the biggest risk point in China-US relations," the Chinese foreign ministry said in a statement.

Beijing claims Taiwan as part of its territory and is sharply critical of US military assistance to the self-ruled island.