President Donald Trump praised his “truly great friendship” with Chinese President Xi Jinping as the two leaders opened a high-profile Washington summit focused on trade, artificial intelligence, Taiwan and the war in Iran.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom.
President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping opened their Washington summit Thursday by emphasizing cooperation between the world’s two largest economies, even as major disputes over trade, Taiwan, advanced technology and Iran remained unresolved.
Trump welcomed Xi to the White House during an elaborate state visit and highlighted the personal relationship the two leaders have developed since his first term.
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“From the time of my first election in 2016, President Xi and I have forged a friendship, a truly great friendship, actually, built on mutual respect and the vital interests of our people,” Trump said during opening remarks before formal discussions. (104.5 WOKV)
Xi struck a similarly conciliatory tone while acknowledging that competition between Washington and Beijing will continue.
The “competition should be a healthy one and should be kept within bounds,” Xi said.
“It should be a race of catching up with one another, not a wrestle in which one either wins or loses,” he added.
The cordial public remarks came against a backdrop of disputes that have strained relations between the United States and China, including U.S. restrictions on advanced semiconductor technology, Beijing’s demands regarding Taiwan, disagreements over Iran and unresolved provisions of the two countries’ trade arrangement.
After approximately 90 minutes of talks Thursday, Trump and Xi emerged from the White House and toured the South Lawn, where Trump showed his guest a newly completed presidential helicopter landing area and Marine One. Trump briefly characterized the discussions afterward by saying, “We had a great meeting.”
The diplomatic effort had begun before Xi reached the Oval Office.
Trump and first lady Melania Trump personally greeted Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, at Joint Base Andrews on Wednesday evening. The White House then staged a formal arrival ceremony Thursday featuring military units and a flyover by a B-2 Spirit bomber accompanied by four F-22 Raptors. (The White House)
Melania Trump later accompanied Peng to the Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art while Trump and Xi met privately.
The Chinese leader also announced two gestures intended to emphasize cultural ties. China will invite 100,000 young Americans to study or participate in exchanges in China during the next five years, Xi said, and Beijing will send two pandas to Zoo Atlanta.
Xi called the pandas an “envoy of friendship” and said they would meet the American public in a “few days.”
Despite the ceremonial atmosphere, economic negotiations were among the most immediate issues facing the two governments.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced Wednesday that Washington and Beijing had agreed to extend their existing trade truce by two months, moving its expiration from Nov. 10 to Jan. 10 while negotiators explore whether a broader agreement is possible. (Reuters)
“We met today to see if we could do a bigger deal as opposed to just a series of smaller things,” Bessent said after talks with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, adding that the extension would provide “more time to see what we can do on the economic front.”
The current arrangement has reduced some of the tensions that characterized previous rounds of U.S.-China tariff disputes, but several commitments remain unfinished.
Bessent said China was meeting its commitment to purchase 25 million tons of U.S. soybeans but was lagging behind a separate pledge involving $17 billion in other American agricultural products. U.S. officials have also said Chinese deliveries of rare-earth materials have fallen short of expectations.
Artificial intelligence emerged as another prominent area where the two governments are simultaneously competing and exploring limited cooperation.
Trump said before Thursday’s meeting that AI — which he has increasingly referred to as “superintelligence” — would be a major topic.
“I want to leave it exactly where it is,” Trump wrote. “That is China’s position also.”
Xi said during his opening remarks that the two countries have a responsibility to ensure that AI remains subject to human direction.
“We have both the capability and responsibility to develop and manage AI for good and ensure that a development of AI is always under human control and serves the well being of the people,” Xi said.
Officials have already begun exploring a mechanism for communicating about serious AI incidents.
Bessent said U.S. officials proposed a notification system that could allow Washington and Beijing to alert each other when an AI event rises to the level of a national security concern. Discussions have included risks from cyberattacks, biological misuse, major model failures and loss of human control over advanced systems. (AP News)
That limited safety dialogue is unfolding while the two countries remain fierce competitors for technological leadership.
The United States has restricted China’s access to some advanced semiconductors and chipmaking technologies, arguing that such equipment could strengthen Chinese military and AI capabilities. Beijing has criticized those controls and pushed Washington to loosen them.
Xi is also seeking changes in U.S. policy toward Taiwan, which Beijing regards as Chinese territory.
China has repeatedly demanded that Washington permanently end arms sales to the self-governing island. Beijing has not renounced the use of force to bring Taiwan under its control, while U.S. law requires Washington to make defensive equipment available to Taiwan and maintain the capacity to resist coercion against the island.
When Trump met Xi in Beijing in May, Trump delayed final approval of a proposed $14 billion arms package for Taiwan and described arms sales as a “very good negotiating chip” in discussions with China.
Xi did not directly raise Taiwan during his public opening remarks Thursday.
Instead, he said Washington and Beijing “must hold the line of no conflict and no confrontation.”
“We can certainly find the right path for two great countries to get along on this planet we both call home,” Xi said.
Iran presents another difficult test for the relationship.
The Trump administration has urged China to use its economic influence with Tehran to help bring the nearly seven-month conflict to an end. China imports substantial amounts of energy from the Persian Gulf and maintains significant economic ties with Iran, giving Beijing potential leverage with Iranian leaders.
Beijing, however, has condemned U.S. and Israeli military action against Iran. Xi previously warned that the conflict reflected what he described as a return to the “law of the jungle.”
The disagreement comes after China was also angered by the U.S. operation earlier this year that removed Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and brought him to New York to face federal narcoterrorism and drug-trafficking charges.
Since Maduro’s removal, the Trump administration has pressed Latin American governments to reduce some economic and political ties with Beijing and has cited Chinese and Russian influence when arguing for greater U.S. involvement in Venezuela’s energy sector.
Trump’s decision to give Xi a full state welcome has drawn criticism from some lawmakers despite the administration’s argument that direct engagement is necessary to manage the relationship.
“Quite frankly, had the White House asked me for advice, I would have suggested the president not invite Xi Jinping to Washington for such a lavish welcome here in the United States of America based on all of the troubling issues we have with President Xi and the Chinese Communist Party,” Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., said.
The White House nevertheless designed the visit as one of the administration’s most elaborate diplomatic events.
Trump had pushed for completion of a new South Lawn helicopter landing area before Xi arrived. After Thursday’s meetings, the two leaders toured the site and Marine One before Xi departed temporarily from the White House.
Xi was scheduled to return Thursday evening with Peng for a black-tie state dinner in the East Room. The program includes a toast honoring President Richard Nixon, whose 1972 trip to China marked a pivotal stage in the normalization of relations between Washington and Beijing.
Trump had previously expressed disappointment that his planned new White House ballroom would not be finished in time for Xi’s visit, leaving the East Room as the setting for the dinner.
The president also departed from his usual practice of holding an extended Oval Office press availability with a visiting leader. Photographers were permitted a brief opportunity to capture images before the private talks, while Xi, who rarely fields unscripted questions from reporters, did not participate in a joint news conference.
Trump joked about the difference between the American and Chinese press corps, remarking that Xi’s reporters appeared friendlier and suggesting Chinese journalists sought permission before speaking.
Behind those lighter moments, both governments have reasons to avoid another major economic rupture.
The United States is approaching November’s midterm elections while businesses and consumers remain sensitive to trade disruptions. China, meanwhile, is managing an uneven economy in which domestic demand has faced challenges even as high-technology exports remain comparatively strong. The two-month trade extension gives negotiators additional time without requiring either side to settle the larger disputes immediately. (Reuters)
Whether Thursday’s meetings produce durable agreements on those issues remains unclear.
The existing trade truce now runs through Jan. 10, while discussions on AI have so far centered largely on communication and risk management rather than resolving the wider technology rivalry. Taiwan remains a fundamental point of disagreement, and China has shown little public willingness to adopt Washington’s position toward Iran.
For the opening of the state visit, however, Trump and Xi chose to emphasize the possibility of managing those differences rather than the disputes themselves.
Trump framed that effort through their personal relationship, while Xi described competition as something that should remain controlled rather than become a zero-sum confrontation.
“From the time of my first election in 2016, President Xi and I have forged a friendship, a truly great friendship, actually, built on mutual respect and the vital interests of our people,” Trump said.
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