U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday he has a very good relationship with top U.S. infectious diseases expert Dr. Anthony Fauci but does not always agree with him. 

Trump has been increasingly critical of government health officials and their guidance as a steady rise in coronavirus infections threatens the easing of shutdown restrictions across the country. Last week, Trump told Fox News that Fauci had made a lot of mistakes concerning the coronavirus. 

"I have a very good relationship with Dr. Fauci," Trump told reporters, adding: "I find him to be a very nice person. I don't always agree with him."  

Less than four months before the presidential election, Trump has repeatedly minimized the dramatic increase in the number of COVID-19 cases across the U.S., even as the country surpasses 3.3 million confirmed infections and 135,000 deaths, the world's highest toll.    

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"Dr. Fauci is a nice man, but he's made a lot of mistakes," said Trump last week.  

A White House official sought to further discredit Fauci over the weekend by anonymously circulating talking points to The Washington Post warning that White House officials were "concerned about the number of times Dr. Fauci has been wrong on things."  

The same official provided a list of Fauci's statements that he believed were incorrect.  

Despite the efforts to malign Fauci, the White House appeared eager to downplay tensions, with Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany saying Monday that Trump "certainly" still values the expert's opinion.  

"Dr. Fauci is one of many on the task force who provides advice," she said.  

Faced with outbreak surges in the U.S. south and west, Fauci sounded the alarm last week, denouncing the hasty end to lockdowns in several states and the general carelessness of many Americans.  

"As a country, when you compare us to other countries, I don't think you can say we're doing great," he said last Thursday. "We're just not." 

More than two thirds of Americans said they trust Fauci on the coronavirus, according to a New York Times poll conducted by Siena College last month. By contrast, only 26 percent said they trusted Trump on that issue. 

(With input from AFP, Reuters)