UNITED NATIONS, July 12 (Xinhua) -- United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday expressed the hope that trade difficulties among UN member states could be solved through negotiations.

Asked about his comment on the escalating trade dispute between China and the United States at a press conference, Guterres said he didn't believe the two countries are "in a state of war" because of disputes in trade issues, but there have been "a number of trade measures taken."

The UN chief said he hopes that the disputes can "be solved both by the spirit of negotiations and by taking account of the role of the World Trade Organization (WTO)."

Guterres added that he is "a strong believer in free and fair trade," and a strong believer in the WTO's role in solving the disputes that might exist among many states.

Days after tariffs on 34 billion U.S. dollars' worth of Chinese goods went into effect, the Trump administration is readying tariffs on another 200 billion dollars of Chinese imports.