Xi Jinping told President Donald Trump that trade talks were making progress at the start of a two-day summit, but cautioned that disagreement over Taiwan could send relations down a dangerous path and even lead to conflict.
The Chinese president’s remarks on Taiwan, the democratically governed island claimed by Beijing, came in a closed-door meeting of the leaders of the world’s two largest economies that ran more than two hours, China’s foreign ministry said yesterday.
They represented a stark – if not unprecedented – warning during a pomp-filled occasion that was otherwise friendly and relaxed, although the US summary of the talks made no mention of Taiwan.
Instead, it focused on the leaders’ shared desire to reopen the key waterway of the Strait of Hormuz, effectively closed due to the Iran conflict, and Xi’s apparent interest in buying American oil to reduce China’s dependence on Middle East supplies.
With Trump’s approval ratings dented by a crisis with Iran that shows no signs of abating, the first visit by a US president to China in nearly a decade has taken on added significance as he searches for economic wins.
“There are those who say this may be the biggest summit ever,” Trump told Xi in brief opening remarks, after a ceremony that featured an honour guard and throngs of children waving flowers and flags at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People.
Xi told Trump that preparatory negotiations between US and Chinese economic and trade teams in South Korea on Wednesday had reached “balanced and positive outcomes”, China’s foreign ministry said.
The talks aimed to maintain a fragile trade truce struck when the leaders last met in October, where Trump suspended triple-digit tariffs on Chinese goods and Xi backed away from choking global supplies of vital rare earths.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who led Wednesday’s talks, said he expected progress on establishing mechanisms to support future bilateral trade and investment, and an announcement about large Chinese orders for Boeing aircraft.
Trump expected Xi to raise the thorny issue of US arms sales to Taiwan, he said earlier this week.
With the status of a US$14bil (RM55bil) package awaiting Trump’s approval still unclear, China has reiterated its strong opposition to the sales.
The United States is bound by law to provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself, despite a lack of formal diplomatic ties.
Xi told Trump that Taiwan was the most important issue they faced and if handled poorly could push the entire US-China relationship into an extremely dangerous situation and cause the countries to collide or even enter conflict, according to Beijing’s summary of the talks.
Xi’s remarks were noteworthy, even though Beijing had issued strong warnings on Taiwan in the past, said Joe Mazur, geopolitics analyst at consultancy Trivium China.
“He’s warning the US side in no uncertain terms not to screw around,” Mazur added.
Trump did not respond to a reporter’s shouted question whether the leaders had discussed Taiwan as he posed with Xi later for photos at the Temple of Heaven, a Unesco World Heritage Site where emperors once prayed for good harvests.
At a lavish state banquet yesterday evening attended by senior officials and business executives, Xi told the audience that the China-US relationship was the most important in the world.
“We must make it work and never mess it up,” Xi said, before guests tucked into a 10-course dinner that included lobster soup, Beijing roast duck and tiramisu.
The leaders will take tea and lunch together today before Trump departs.
Joining Trump on his visit are a group of CEOs looking to resolve issues with China, from Elon Musk, viewed in China as a visionary and occasional villain, to Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, a late addition to the delegation.
Trump yesterday invited Xi for a reciprocal trip to the White House on Sept 24, the first since Trump began his second term last year. — Reuters
