Iran war, trade on agenda as Trump, Xi meet at high-stakes US-China summit
Topics such as the Iran war, Taiwan, trade are expected to be raised
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US PRESIDENT Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping will meet on Thursday (May 12) morning in Beijing, according to the White House, for a high-stakes summit that will be dominated by discussions on trade and the war in Iran.
The trip marks the first visit by a US president to China in nearly a decade and comes as the leaders of the world’s two largest economies struggle to navigate a number of bilateral issues and tensions over the Middle East conflict.
Trump is expected to press Xi on China’s approach to Iran, according to a US official who briefed reporters ahead of the trip, including over revenue for Teheran and potential weapons exports.
The three-month conflict has strained US-China ties, as Trump looks to pressure Teheran to bring the war he launched in late February to an end. Those efforts include sanctions on multiple Chinese companies for buying Iranian oil.
Trump said on Monday he will discuss with his Chinese counterpart US arms sales to Taiwan, the self-ruled island the Communist Party considers its own despite never having ruled it. Since 1979, US law has required Washington to support Taiwan’s ability to defend itself, including through arms sales.
During a phone call earlier this year, Xi asked Trump to handle such sales with caution, after the US in December approved an US$11 billion arms package to Taiwan.
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“I’m going to have that discussion,” Trump said. “President Xi would like us not to. And I’ll have that discussion.”
The US president also reiterated that he would raise the case of imprisoned Hong Kong businessman Jimmy Lai – another sensitive issue for China.
Lai, who founded the now gone Hong Kong newspaper Apple Daily, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for collusion and sedition charges in February, under Beijing’s National Security Law.
“People would like him out. And I’d like to see him get out, too,” Trump told reporters Monday in the Oval Office. “So, I’ll bring him up again.”
Those conversations will take place against a tense backdrop, as Trump warned Monday that the ceasefire between the US and Iran was on “massive life support,” after he rejected Teheran’s latest peace offer.
The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has left Gulf countries unable to export oil and gas supplies, triggering a global energy crisis.
China is a major importer of crude oil and has been left to find ways to prevent domestic shortages. Trump is also expected to press Xi on plans to establish a new board of trade to help manage bilateral economic matters.
Trump is set to arrive in China on Wednesday evening, according to a White House schedule of the trip.
In addition to bilateral discussions with Xi on Thursday morning, Trump will participate in a state banquet that evening. Trump and Xi will also have tea and lunch together on Friday, before the US president leaves China for Washington later that day. BLOOMBERG
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