{"id":599,"date":"2026-05-16T02:44:19","date_gmt":"2026-05-16T02:44:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/arabnewsmonitor.com\/?p=599"},"modified":"2026-05-16T02:44:19","modified_gmt":"2026-05-16T02:44:19","slug":"what-did-trump-and-xi-achieve-in-beijing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/arabnewsmonitor.com\/?p=599","title":{"rendered":"What did Trump and Xi achieve in Beijing?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The American and Chinese presidents talked Iran, Taiwan, and trade, but found little to agree on<\/strong><\/p>\n

US President Donald Trump\u2019s meeting with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, was heavy on pomp, praise, and promises. But what did both leaders walk away with after the superpower summit in Beijing?<\/p>\n

Trump left Beijing on Friday, two days after becoming the first US president to visit the Chinese capital in almost a decade. The trip took place amid two paused conflicts \u2013 Trump\u2019s trade war with Beijing and his real war against Iran \u2013 which directly affect China, and although both leaders hailed positive developments in their relationship, differing statements from the two sides suggest that these issues and others remain unresolved.<\/p>\n

Xi gives Trump a royal welcome<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

From the military honors and red carpet that greeted Trump on Wednesday, to the garden tour of Xi\u2019s Zhongnanhai compound on Friday morning, the Chinese president was a gracious host throughout. At a lavish banquet on Thursday, Xi declared that \u201cthe great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and making America great again can go hand in hand.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\n
\n READ MORE: <\/span>Trump-Xi summit begins in Beijing (VIDEOS)
\n <\/a>\n <\/p>\n

Trump returned the favor, telling Xi that the welcome ceremony was \u201can honor like few I\u2019ve ever seen before,\u201d<\/em> and that the roses in the gardens of Zhongnanhai were \u201cthe most beautiful roses anyone has ever seen.\u201d<\/em> A lifelong teetotaler, Trump went as far as taking a sip of wine when Xi proposed a toast at the banquet.<\/p>\n

\n
\n US President Donald Trump makes a toast during a state banquet hosted by Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People, May 14, 2026, Beijing, China.<\/p>\n


\n \u00a9\u00a0Getty Images \/ Alex Wong <\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Ahead of bilateral talks on Friday, Trump claimed that he and Xi had \u201csettled a lot of different problems that other people wouldn\u2019t have been able to settle, and the relationship is a very strong one.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0<\/p>\n

Did Trump and Xi reach breakthrough on Taiwan?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

Amid the optics and pageantry, few observers expected any progress on Taiwan \u2013 the longest-running unresolved issue between Washington and Beijing. Xi maintains that Taiwan\u2019s reunification with the Chinese mainland is \u201cinevitable,\u201d<\/em> while the US has followed a policy of strategic ambiguity since the 1970s. It accepts but does not endorse Beijing\u2019s claim to the island.<\/p>\n

\n Read more<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\n \"US
Xi promised not to send military equipment to Iran \u2013 Trump<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/blockquote>\n

According to China\u2019s Foreign Ministry, Xi warned Trump that \u201cthe Taiwan question is the most important issue in China-US relations,\u201d<\/em> and \u201cif mishandled, the two nations could collide or even come into conflict.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0<\/p>\n

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on Friday, Trump said that he and Xi \u201ctalked a lot\u201d<\/em> about Taiwan, and about a planned US arms sale to Taipei this year. \u201cI made no commitment either way,\u201d<\/em> Trump added. The US president then said that Xi had asked him whether he\u2019d use the US military to defend Taiwan. In keeping with the US\u2019 policy of ambiguity, Trump said that he replied \u201cI don\u2019t talk about that.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0
<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not looking to have somebody go independent,\u201d<\/em> Trump said in a Fox News interview aired on Friday. \u201cAnd, you know, we\u2019re supposed to travel 9,500 miles to fight a war? I\u2019m not looking for that. I want them to cool down. I want China to cool down.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0<\/p>\n

What did they say about Iran?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

Trump emerged from talks with Xi claiming victory on the issue of Iran, with his own comments and White House statements suggesting that Beijing would help push Iran into a peace deal that favors the US.
<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cWe did discuss Iran,\u201d<\/em> Trump said on Friday. \u201cWe feel very similar about [how] we want it to end. We don\u2019t want them to have a nuclear weapon. We want the straits open.\u201d<\/em> A White House statement went further, claiming \u201cPresident Xi also made clear China\u2019s opposition to the militarization of the\u00a0<\/em>Strait and any effort to charge a toll for its use, and he expressed interest in purchasing more American oil to reduce China\u2019s dependence on the Strait in the future.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n Read more<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\n \"Geopolitical
Trump\u2019s China trip an attempt to \u2018save face\u2019 \u2013 analyst to RT<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/blockquote>\n

However, the Chinese government\u2019s statement makes no mention of nuclear weapons, tolls, or any purchase of American oil. \u201cThere is no point in continuing this conflict which should not have happened in the first place,\u201d<\/em> the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Friday. \u201cTo find an early way to resolve the situation is in the interest of not only the US and Iran, but also regional countries and the rest of the world.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0<\/p>\n

China imports around 12% of its oil from Iran. While the Islamic Republic has allowed some Chinese vessels to transit the Strait of Hormuz, a five-point China-Pakistan proposal to resolve the conflict has urged all parties to ensure the \u201cnormal passage\u201d<\/em> of ships through the waterway as soon as possible.<\/p>\n

In one potential breakthrough, Trump said on Friday that he is considering lifting sanctions on Chinese companies that purchase Iranian oil.<\/p>\n

Did Trump and Xi settle the trade war?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

The US trade war with China remains in a state of truce, with Trump\u2019s heightened tariffs on Chinese goods paused until November. Trump left Beijing claiming that he had secured \u201cfantastic trade deals\u201d<\/em> with Xi, including the purchase by China of 200 Boeing passenger jets. US trade representative Jamieson Greer also said that he expected China to buy \u201cdouble-digit billions\u201d<\/em> worth of US agricultural exports \u201cover the next three years.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0<\/p>\n

However, Boeing has not confirmed the jet deal, and even if it does, the purchase of 200 aircraft falls dramatically short of the 500 predicted by market insiders before the trip. The Chinese government has not confirmed any trade deals, agricultural or otherwise.<\/p>\n

After meeting American business executives who accompanied Trump to Beijing \u2013 including Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Nvidia chief Jensen Huang \u2013 Xi \u201cnoted that China-US economic and trade ties are mutually beneficial and win-win in nature,\u201d<\/em> read an ambiguous statement from the Chinese Foreign Ministry.<\/p>\n

\n Read more<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\n \"Soldiers
US intel fears Iran war handed China strategic advantage \u2013 WaPo<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Drugs and rare earths<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

Trump has repeatedly accused China of facilitating the flow of fentanyl and its precursor chemicals into the US, slapping a 10% tariff on China over its alleged inaction on the issue last year. Beijing maintains that the accusations are politically motivated.<\/p>\n

The White House claimed on Friday that Trump and Xi agreed on \u201cthe need to build on progress in ending the flow of fentanyl precursors into the United States,\u201d<\/em> although the Chinese side has not referred to fentanyl in any of its post-summit statements.<\/p>\n

China\u2019s near-monopoly on rare earth minerals \u2013 vital in the manufacture of electric vehicle motors, guided missiles, and a range of high-tech components \u2013 is one of Beijing\u2019s strongest cards in the trade dispute with the US. China imposed export controls on these minerals last year, but relented and allowed their sale to the US when the trade war was put on hold in October.<\/p>\n

The fact that neither Trump nor the Chinese government mentioned rare earths after the summit suggests that the issue is still very much unsettled.<\/p>\n

The bottom line<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

Although the most pressing issues between the US and China remain unresolved, both sides portrayed it as positive. Trump said that his trip was \u201cvery successful,\u201d<\/em> while Xi described it as an \u201chistoric and landmark\u201d<\/em> visit. Perhaps the most significant outcome of the trip was Trump\u2019s invitation to Xi to visit the White House in September, which Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi confirmed on Friday that Xi had accepted.<\/p>\n

Xi last visited the White House in 2015. The fact that he will travel to Washington before Trump\u2019s tariffs are reapplied indicates that both Washington and Beijing believe that a trade deal can be struck, and some agreement on other issues can be reached.<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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