President Donald Trump is set to travel to China this week, where he will meet with President Xi Jinping to discuss several pressing issues, including the Iran war, the fate of Taiwan, artificial intelligence, and a possible new trade deal.
Trump will arrive in China on Wednesday for a two-day summit. This will be the first time the two leaders have met in person in nearly six months after they briefly met on the sidelines of the APEC summit in Busan, South Korea, last year.
During the visit, Trump will participate in a welcome ceremony and a bilateral meeting with Xi on Thursday. He will also tour the Temple of Heaven with Xi and participate in a state banquet. Trump will then participate in a bilateral tea and working lunch with Xi on Friday before departing from China.
In a preview of the trip, White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly told reporters it would focus on “rebuilding the safety, security, and prosperity of Americans,” but with a “clear-eyed view of the economic and security realities of today.”
Much has changed since Trump and Xi’s October meeting. In late February, the United States and Israel launched Operation Epic Fury, which marked the start of the Iran war. The conflict has throttled the Strait of Hormuz, driving up global oil and gas prices.
Trump has feuded with European allies he deemed insufficiently supportive of the Middle Eastern conflict, including Pope Leo XIV, and seen his disapproval numbers rise.
The Supreme Court also struck down Trump’s use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to impose “Liberation Day” tariffs on most U.S. trade partners in February.
But the visit could help Trump if a trade deal with China is reached or if Xi commits to helping end the Iran war. Here’s what to know about the trip.
Will China and the US strike a tariff deal?
At the APEC summit, Trump and Xi struck a truce on the escalating trade war between the U.S. and China. Trump had imposed levies on China at more than 140%, while China retaliated by blocking access to critical rare earth minerals.
The two leaders are expected to discuss a new Board of Trade and Board of Investment to manage bilateral relations between Washington and Beijing. The White House has also signaled that discussions will focus on extending the trade truce brokered in October.
Trump praised his Chinese counterpart while speaking to reporters on Monday. “I have a great relationship with President Xi,” Trump said during an Oval Office event. “We’re doing a lot of business, but it’s smart business.
“We used to be taken advantage of for years with our previous presidents, and now we’re doing great with China,” he said. “We make a lot of money with China.”
A new analysis from the Council on Foreign Relations seems to back up Trump’s claim.
“Beijing is probably willing to buy Boeing aircraft and American soybeans for stability,” said Rush Doshi, the director of the China Strategy Initiative at the Council on Foreign Relations.
Will Trump acquire China’s help with Iran?
Iran’s control of the Strait of Hormuz has caused economic turmoil globally — not just in the U.S. A Chinese vessel was attacked in the strait this month, further escalating tensions. (The war also delayed Trump’s original trip to China in March.)
Beijing has even acted as a back-channel mediator between the two nations in hopes of securing a ceasefire.
Trump has repeatedly claimed that more countries besides the U.S. should take action in reopening the strait. China, according to Trump, gets “40% of their oil from Hormuz.”
Trump has also imposed 50% tarriffs on any country supplying weapons to Iran, a move that targeted Russia and China, who are Iran’s most significant weapons suppliers. Hanging over the trip is the current U.S. Naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
The president, however, has claimed a permanent ceasefire is unlikely.
“I would say the ceasefire is on massive life support,” he said. “Where the doctor walks in and says, sir, your loved one has approximately a 1% chance of living.”
What happens with Taiwan?
Xi will be looking to gain concessions from Trump on Taiwan in exchange for help with the Strait of Hormuz.
Particularly, “Xi would be delighted if Trump would say that he ‘opposes’ rather than ‘does not support’ Taiwan independence,” David Shambaugh, director of the China Policy Program at George Washington University, wrote recently.
Trump appeared to compare the tensions between China and Taiwan to the Russia-Ukraine war.
“He [Xi] knows I don’t want that to happen very far away, very, very far away,” Trump said about China’s claim that Taiwan is its territory. “We’re 9,500 miles. He’s 67 miles. It’s a little bit of a difference. But, you know, there’s a lot of, there’s a lot of support for Taiwan, from Japan and from countries from that area.”
Ahead of his trip, a bipartisan group of eight senators urged the president to announce a sale of $14 billion in new weapons to Taiwan. Trump later said he would speak with Xi about the issue.
SENATORS URGE TRUMP TO ANNOUNCE TAIWAN ARMS SALE AHEAD OF VISIT TO CHINA
“I’m going to have that discussion with President Xi,” Trump said. “President Xi would like us not to, and I’ll have that discussion. That’s one of the many things I’ll be talking about.”
A senior U.S. official tamped down any expectations on the topic ahead of their meeting.
“There is an ongoing conversation between President Trump and General Secretary Xi Jinping about Taiwan,” the U.S. official said. “Certainly, the last couple times they’ve interacted has been a point of discussion. There’s been no change of U.S. policy coming out of those. We don’t expect to see any changes in U.S. policy going forward.”
Will Jimmy Lai become a focal point in conversations?
Jimmy Lai, the pro-democracy activist, could become a key point of discussion between Trump and Xi as Lai’s family pushes the administration for his release from prison.
While talking with reporters, Trump compared Lai to former FBI director James Comey, who was indicted for a second time by a grand jury in North Carolina over a photo he posted of seashells in the sand that spelled out “86 47,” a phrase that detractors claimed was a call to kill the commander in chief.
“It’s like saying to me, ‘If Comey ever went to jail, would you let him out?’ Might be a hard one for me,” Trump said. “Does that make sense? It might be hard because he’s a dirty cop. But Jimmy Lai is in that way. But Jimmy, like he caused lots of turmoil for China. He tried to do the right thing. He wasn’t successful, and people would like him out.”
Lai frequently criticized Beijing and was the founder of the pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily before his prison sentence.
“I’d like to see him get out too,” Trump said. “So I’ll bring him up again. I have brought him up.”
Who will go with Trump to China?
The White House has remained mum on who will travel with Trump to China this week. But tech billionaire Elon Musk is expected to join the delegation traveling with the president.
Other business leaders reportedly joining the delegation to China include Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon, Mastercard President Michael Miebach, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, Apple CEO Tim Cook, Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon, Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg, Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser, and Blackstone CEO Steve Schwarzman.
Among the Cabinet leaders who won’t be in Beijing is Vice President JD Vance, who is expected to travel to Maine this week.