Washington, October 6 — The highly anticipated meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping lasted a mere 90 minutes, despite the extended duration of Xi’s three-day state visit to Washington. Officials said the summit was lacking in substance, with both leaders avoiding discussions on pressing issues such as wars, climate change, and artificial intelligence. The account indicates that the meeting was largely unproductive, with Edgard D.
Kagan of the Center for Strategic and International Studies characterizing the event as a “nothing burger.” According to state and international reports, the meeting served to mask deepening crises since May and buy time for preparing for sharper confrontations.
Trade Discussions
Trade discussions between the two nations repeated earlier points, with President Trump’s May agreement to lift tariffs on $30 billion of “non-sensitive” Chinese exports being reiterated but reclassified as “favorable treatment.” This treatment was expanded to $60 billion and included 1,619 US items, such as agricultural products and whales and dolphins for breeding, as well as 77 Chinese items, including clay pigeons for shooting.
The US and China also imposed new blacklistings and restrictions on firms with military ties, and the US maintained ongoing investigations that could lead to additional sanctions. China’s planned purchase of 200 Boeing aircraft remained unimplemented, though soybean imports from the US were fulfilled.
The “Board of Investment” and “Board of Trade” launched in May had not commenced operations.
Regional Tensions
Tensions in the region were evident, with Taiwan being raised by Xi in Beijing’s account, urging Trump to oppose independence. However, this was omitted from the US readout. Disagreement also emerged over military communications, with China claiming that the militaries agreed to a memorandum of understanding on crisis communication, which the Trump administration denied.
The temporary trade truce established in South Korea in November 2018 was extended only to January 10, 2019, a short extension that Beijing had wanted to last through Trump’s presidency, while the US sought to retain flexibility for new tariffs or sanctions. According to the Peterson Institute for International Economics, the US average tariff on Chinese goods was 51.1% in May, compared to China’s 32.6% on US goods.
Looking Ahead
As the meeting came to a close, officials said that the only concrete outcome was an agreement to meet twice more in 2019, at the APEC summit in Shenzhen and the G20 in Miami. The US administration will likely continue to monitor the situation closely, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio playing a key role in shaping the US response to China’s actions. With tensions in the region showing no signs of easing, the upcoming meetings will be closely watched for any signs of progress or escalation.
The meeting between Trump and Xi was a significant event in the complex history of US-China relations, which have been marked by periods of cooperation and tension. As the two nations continue to navigate their differences, the international community will be watching closely to see how the situation develops.
With the US maintaining its stance on trade and security, and China pushing back against what it sees as unfair pressure, the stage is set for a potentially volatile period in US-China relations.
