Live updates: Trump wraps up warm China trip with few clear wins
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The president’s two day summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping saw praise and claims of progress from both sides, but also persistent differences on Taiwan and other key issues.
What to know about Trump's trip
- SUMMIT WRAPPED: President Donald Trump has left China after two days of talks with President Xi Jinping that saw both sides trade praise and tout progress in stabilizing what they agreed is the world's most important relationship.
- NO CLEAR BREAKTHROUGHS: The president hailed "fantastic" trade deals and said “a lot of different problems” were settled, though no major agreements or breakthroughs were announced before he departed Beijing.
- FOCUS ON TAIWAN: Xi warned Trump on Day 1 that mishandling China's claims on Taiwan could cause "clashes and even conflicts," with the disputed island central to Beijing's view of the talks.
- OPENING THE STRAIT: The U.S. assessments focused on trade and Iran. Trump discussed the Iran war and the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz with Xi, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told NBC News, adding that Trump did not ask Xi for help in ending the monthslong war.
Taiwan thanks U.S. after Rubio says policy remains unchanged
Taiwan thanked the U.S. today after Secretary of State Marco Rubio told NBC News that Washington’s policy toward the island had not changed following Trump’s meeting with Xi in Beijing.
Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry said Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung thanked the U.S. for repeatedly expressing support for peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, according to Taiwan’s government-funded Central News Agency.
Rubio said in an interview from Beijing that Taiwan came up during the Trump-Xi meeting, but that U.S. policy toward Taiwan remained unchanged.
Trump announces plan to build National Garden of American Heroes in West Potomac Park
Trump, still on his way back from China, has posted an official announcement on Truth Social of his plans to build the National Garden of American Heroes in West Potomac Park in Washington, complete with a rendering.
@realDonaldTrump / Truth Social
“Right now, it is a totally BARREN field of Prime Waterfront Real Estate along our Mighty Potomac River,” he wrote. “When finished, West Potomac Park will be a World Class Masterpiece with elegant Landscaping, and adorned with Beautiful Statues, and be yet another one of my great projects to make Washington, D.C., the Safest and Most Beautiful Capital in the World.”
The idea for the garden of statues of famous Americans dates back to his first term. Funding for the garden was included in the “one big beautiful bill.”
Pandas set for 8,000-mile blind date in Atlanta
They’ve never met, but Ping Ping and Fu Shuang are getting ready for the blind date of a lifetime. The two pandas are preparing to leave China on a nearly 8,000-mile trip to their new home in Atlanta.
Ping Ping and Fu Shuang will make the lengthy journey from their current home in Chengdu, a city of over 20 million people in southwestern China.
While Ping Ping is an avid bamboo eater, Fu Shuang — whose name means “double happiness” — is playful but a bit timid. She also enjoys snacking on apples and resting her chin on her paw.
The pair will eventually be moved to another panda base farther south before they begin their journey to America.
China doesn't say if it's buying Boeing aircraft
When asked about Trump saying that China had agreed to buy 200 Boeing aircraft, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun didn't confirm the claim.
Instead, he told reporters today at a regular briefing, "China and the United States can promote their respective development and revitalization by strengthening cooperation." Trump had earlier told Fox News that China had agreed to buy 200 Boeing planes.
When asked if both countries had reached any agreement in agriculture, Guo said that the U.S. and China had reached "important consensus on maintaining the stability of economic and trade relations, expanding practical cooperation in various fields, and properly managing their differences."
China was willing to work with the U.S. to achieve win-win outcomes, he added.
Why China emphasized a new relationship status with the U.S.
Beijing seems to be seeking to ensure stability in U.S.-China relations for the rest of Trump’s term in office — as long as the U.S. doesn’t make any perceived false moves on Beijing-claimed Taiwan, one of the most sensitive issues in the relationship.
Trump and Xi tour Zhongnanhai Garden in Beijing today. Evan Vucci / Getty Images
According to a Chinese readout of the Trump-Xi talks yesterday, the two leaders agreed to work toward a relationship of “constructive strategic stability,” a phrase that Xi said would guide ties for the next three years and beyond.
There was no mention of the concept in the U.S. readout of the talks, although Secretary of State Marco Rubio appeared to allude to it in an interview with NBC News.
“One of the things the Chinese emphasize, which we agree, is strategic stability in our relationship, a constructive relationship, but also one that establishes strategic stability so that we don’t have misunderstandings that could lead to broader conflict,” he told “NBC Nightly News” anchor Tom Llamas in Beijing.
The new framing accepts that the U.S.-China relationship is a competitive one, while potentially allowing China to define what kind of competition crosses the line, Chinese affairs commentator Bill Bishop said in his Sinocism newsletter.
“The Chinese government wants a period of strategic détente and this concept could realize that on terms favorable to them for the rest of Trump’s second term,” he said.
Any future U.S. action that China doesn’t like, such as combating Chinese industrial overcapacity or tightening export controls, “could then be cast by Beijing as violations of the new ‘constructive China-U.S. relationship of strategic stability’ to which the two leaders personally agreed,” Bishop said.
Stability could also be threatened by disputes over Taiwan, a self-ruling democracy that relies on the U.S. to resist China’s designs on it. During their talks yesterday, Xi warned Trump that the Taiwan issue could lead to “clashes and even conflicts” between their countries if not handled carefully.
“The concept of ‘constructive strategic stability’ appears to be the new moniker for the relationship that China intends to use, at least over the next three years — we’ll see if the U.S. side uses it as well,” said Ambassador Daniel Kritenbrink, a partner at the Asia Group who served as assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs during the Biden administration.
“But of course in classic Chinese fashion, President Xi makes clear this stability could be threatened if Taiwan is not managed well,” he said.
Xi gave Trump a rare tour of China's secret garden at heart of Chinese government
Ahead of their closed-door lunch, Xi gave Trump a tour of Zhongnanhai, the former imperial gardens that now serve as the leadership compound of the Chinese Communist Party.
During the tour, a hot mic captured the leaders talking.
Xi pointed out several historic trees on the grounds, saying some were hundreds of years old and others more than 1,000 years old.
Mark Schiefelbein / POOL/AFP via Getty Images
“One of them is 490 years old. In other places within this compound, there are trees that have lived to be over 1000 years old,” Xi told Trump.
Trump replied, “They live that long?”
Pointing to two trees growing side by side, Xi said they were “connected as one.”
Xi also noted that the site is rarely used for foreign affairs events. Trump responded that it was a “nice place.”
Evan Vucci / POOL/AFP via Getty Images
Evan Vucci / POOL/AFP via Getty Images
Air Force One departs Beijing
The president has now finished his whirlwind visit to China and is heading home to the U.S.
His plane took off from Beijing Capital International Airport at around 2:41 p.m. local time.
Trump boards Air Force One
The president’s motorcade has arrived at the airport in Beijing. Trump was greeted with a red carpet and an honor guard, with dignitaries there to see him off.
A group of children dressed in blue and white held flags and chanted “farewell, farewell, a warm farewell” as Trump climbed the steps of Air Force One.
He waved before boarding and will now fly home to Washington.
Locals flock to airport to watch Trump depart after visit that fascinated Chinese capital
While the Chinese capital regularly hosts world leaders, few command the sort of attention that comes with a visiting U.S. president. And in Trump’s case, his plane.
The landing of Air Force One this week for the pivotal summit was a source of fascination in China. For Trump’s departure today, hundreds of amateur photographers, live streamers, and enthusiasts flocked to the airport to watch the famous presidential plane take off.
“It’s obvious we can just watch Air Force One on CCTV,” said a 19-year-old Beijinger named Yang, "but to take a look at Air Force One in real life, that’s breathtaking.”
With the summit between Trump and Xi winding down, security around the city is easing.
Every time the presidential motorcade made a move, traffic on Beijing’s congested freeways and streets was brought to a complete halt. There have been layers of added fences and barriers, as well as other restrictions (like banning people from using a balcony overlooking motorcade routes) to ensure the two-day visit went off without a hitch.
Crowds of curious onlookers also regularly gathered near the Four Seasons hotel where Trump stayed.
At the airport, Zhan Rui Liu made his enthusiasm easy to spot. The 22-year-old milled around wearing a bright red ‘Make America Great Again’ baseball hat.
‘As a Trump supporter, I’m excited,’ Zhan said of trying to catch a glimpse of the U.S. president, ‘For myself, I want to welcome him.’
Trump heads to the airport after lunch with Xi
Trump is now heading to Beijing Capital International Airport after a closed-door lunch with Xi, concluding his state visit.
Trump says ‘fantastic’ trade deals made during talks with Xi
NBC News looks at Trump’s comments on trade agreements that may have been reached during the U.S.-China summit as well as how the United States’ stance on Taiwan could impact further trade relations between the two countries.
What did Trump and Xi have for lunch?
Trump and Xi were served an expansive menu during their closed-door lunch, with dishes ranging from seafood to traditional Chinese specialties.
The offerings included minced codfish in seafood soup, crispy and stir-fried lobster balls, pan-seared beef fillet stuffed with mushrooms, kung pao chicken, braised seasonal greens, stewed beef in a bun, and steamed pork and shrimp dumplings.
Chocolate brownies, fruit and ice cream were served for dessert.
Families of Americans imprisoned in China appeal to Trump for help
After living without their loved ones for more than a decade, two families of Americans detained in China are appealing to Trump to bring them home as he meets with Xi in Beijing.
U.S. citizens Dawn Michelle Hunt, a 54-year-old from Illinois, and Nelson Wells Jr., a 52-year-old from Louisiana, are both in Chinese prisons on separate allegations of drug trafficking after their families say they were caught up in smuggling scams at the airport.
The Hunt and Wells families see the state visit this week as a rare opportunity for Trump to speak directly to Xi about releasing the two Americans, whose families say are both in declining health.
AI battle between U.S. and China could be part of talks
The Trump administration had telegraphed that AI would be a core part of the meeting between the U.S. and China, but it remains unclear exactly what sort of agreement could be reached over the quick-moving technology.
Both sides have acknowledged AI as a critical issue for global power and technological leadership, with Trump arguing the U.S. “is in a race to achieve global dominance in artificial intelligence.”
China is seen as America’s chief competitor, with its leading systems months behind America’s top companies. The U.S. exerts control over several key bottlenecks in the AI pipeline, especially the manufacturing equipment and chips necessary to power AI hardware.
Some of the administration’s leading AI policy architects are part of the delegation to China, including Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and the director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, Michael Kratsios.
Just three weeks ago, Kratsios penned a memo to the heads of federal agencies targeting Chinese AI companies over their alleged attempts to distill, or reverse engineer, complex AI systems from American companies.
China has taken a strict approach to governing AI, compared to the light-touch designs from the Trump administration. All new powerful generative AI models must be registered with the Beijing central government before they are made public, while similar testing is voluntary in the U.S.
As part of the summit, officials may seek to create some sort of emergency communication system or collaboration to prevent non-state actors from using powerful AI systems for dangerous purposes, Bessent said today.
How the Iran war looms over the Beijing summit
Xi gave Trump a lavish welcome in Tiananmen Square as the superpower summit began. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told “NBC Nightly News” anchor Tom Llamas that key topics included Iran, Taiwan and trade deals.
Trump and Xi begin working lunch
Trump and Xi are now at a working lunch at Zhongnanhai, the last event on the schedule before Trump returns to Washington.
Trump says he and Xi both want Iran war to end
Trump said he and Xi settled “a lot of different problems” that others would have struggled to resolve, and he lavished praise on the U.S.-China relationship.
“We did discuss Iran,” Trump said, saying he and Xi share similar feelings about how they wish for the conflict to end.
“We don’t want them to have a nuclear weapon; we want the straits open,” he added in a reference to the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial shipping route whose effective shutdown by Iran has disrupted global energy supplies.
Trump and Xi deliver closing remarks
Trump and Xi are seated in an ornate room, joined by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, as well as the U.S. ambassador to China, David Perdue, and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.
The two sides made “fantastic trade deals,” Trump said.
Xi is joined by a cadre of top officials including Cai Qi, his chief of staff, Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Vice Premier He Lifeng and Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Ma Zhaoxu.
Roses and archways as Trump and Xi talk
Trump and Xi’s talk lasted about 10 minutes out of sight of reporters. As they continued with their walk, Trump remarked, “These are the most beautiful roses anyone has ever seen.”
Asked whether he was enjoying his visit, Trump offered a thumbs-up.
“No questions,” a Chinese official said.
The two leaders continued their walk through a covered passageway with painted archways that showed birds and traditional Chinese mountain scenes.
Trump and Xi touring the Zhongnanhai leadership compound in Beijing today. Mark Schiefelbein / Getty Images
Xi spoke about the history of the compound through a translator and said he was sending rose seeds to Trump.
What is Zhongnanhai, where Trump and Xi are meeting?
Zhongnanhai is a lakeside, walled leadership compound next to the Forbidden City where China’s top leaders have worked and lived since 1949. It was once part of Beijing’s imperial garden system, and its name, which comes from two connected lakes, Zhonghai and Nanhai, is often used as shorthand for China’s top leadership.
Xi and Trump at Zhongnanhai Garden in Beijing on Friday. Evan Vucci / Pool / AFP via Getty Images
The compound has been the setting for some of the most symbolic moments in U.S.-China diplomacy. Nixon met Mao Zedong there in 1972, hours after he arrived in Beijing for a visit that opened the way for the normalization of U.S.-China relations.
The most recent major U.S. presidential event was Barack Obama’s 2014 meeting with Xi at Yingtai, an imperial-era site inside Zhongnanhai. Chinese state media later framed the meeting as an unusually intimate leader-to-leader exchange, saying their one-on-one talks lasted almost five hours, far longer than scheduled.
Once again, a conspicuous lack of women as Trump and Xi meet
Like the last time Trump and Xi met, women are conspicuously absent from talks between the leaders of the world’s two biggest economies.
Almost all of the business executives and officials who traveled to China with Trump are men, except for Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser, Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg and Meta President Dina Powell McCormick.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and Meta President Dina Powell McCormick in Beijing on Thursday. Brendan Smialowski / AFP via Getty Images
There are also few women on the Chinese side. Though Xi has called for more women in governance, since 2022 there have been no women in his 24-member Politburo, China’s top policymaking body, the first time they have been shut out in 20 years.
First lady Melania Trump, who accompanied Trump on his last state visit to China in 2017, is not on the trip this time. But the president is traveling with Brett Ratner, director of the “Melania” documentary released this year. The film represented a comeback for Ratner after multiple women accused him of sexual misconduct in 2017, allegations he has denied and was never charged over.
Trump and Xi get another chance to talk
Trump and Xi are set to begin the second and final day of their summit in Beijing with a tea ceremony at Zhongnanhai Garden, a sweeping government compound dating to the imperial age, followed by a working lunch.
Xi and Trump at the Zhongnanhai leadership compound in Beijing on Thursday. Mark Schiefelbein / Pool / AFP via Getty Images
Whether the two sides strike any formal agreements before the trip wraps up remains to be seen, though a Chinese official this morning told the pool traveling with Trump that Trump and Xi wanted to have a private discussion as the second day got underway. Trump had said last night during the state banquet that he hoped to continue the day's conversation into the evening.
The walled gardens Trump and Xi are walking through have ornamented Chinese roofs and winding paths trimmed by pink, yellow and red roses, along with manicured lawns and carefully tended trees. A clock chimed 11 as Trump arrived, and there is so little outside noise that you can hear birdsong, in contrast to much of the rest of the city of 22 million people.
Trump set to meet Xi for second time
Trump is making his way to Zhongnanhai, a formal imperial retreat that now serves as the leadership compound of the Chinese Communist Party in Beijing.
Trump's motorcade heads to Zhongnanhai Garden. Pedro Pardo / AFP via Getty Images
Trump and Xi are expected to pose for photos commemorating Trump’s visit before heading into a working tea.
The two leaders are also scheduled to hold a closed-door lunch before Trump departs for Washington later this afternoon.
U.S. trip planned for Xi is a good sign, expert says
The “best single measure” of the success of this week’s U.S.-China summit is how concrete the plans seem to be for a reciprocal U.S. visit by Xi, said Kurt Tong, a managing partner at the Asia Group, with Trump saying the date has been set for Sept. 24.
Trump and Xi on Thursday. Kenny Holston / Pool/AFP via Getty Images
“Such a visit would be a big deal — bigger than President Trump going to Beijing,” said Tong, a former diplomat who was the U.S. consul general in the Chinese territory of Hong Kong.
“If that seems solid, it means a deep commitment by both sides to pursuing strategic stability,” he added.
Posting from China, Trump says Iran war 'to be continued'
Trump said the "military decimation of Iran" is "to be continued" on Truth Social on Friday morning, Beijing time.
Trump said earlier this week that the weekslong ceasefire with Iran is on "life support" amid stalling negotiations to end the war.
The war in Iran, and the subsequent blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, has featured in bilateral talks in Beijing. Trump told Fox News host Sean Hannity on Thursday morning that Xi said his country would not provide military equipment to Iran.
Trump says summit will be remembered as an 'important moment in history'
Trump finished his interview with Sean Hannity tonight by predicting the U.S.-China summit "will go down as a very important moment in history."
"Well, I think it's a very historic summit. It's the two great countries," Trump said on Fox News. "I think it will go down as a very important moment in history, and maybe more than anything else, a great moment of respect."
Trump says Xi is considering buying oil from the U.S.
Trump said tonight that during their meeting, Xi agreed to consider buying oil from the U.S.
"They get a lot of their oil, 40% of their oil, from that location," Trump said in an interview with Sean Hannity, referring to oil from Iran. "One thing I think that we were going to make a deal on is they've agreed, they want to buy oil from the United States, they're going to go to Texas."
"We're going to start sending Chinese ships to Texas and to Louisiana and to Alaska, and I think that was another thing that was agreed to, that's a big thing," he continued.
Asked whether a deal could include liquefied natural gas, Trump said, "Yeah, everything."
Trump said Xi told him "he likes the idea" of buying oil from the U.S.
"I think it'll happen," Trump said. "Look, they're doing it right now. They're sending Chinese ships up to buy it."
Trump says Xi is 'a warm person,' but he's 'all business'
Trump said that he thinks Xi is a "warm person, actually, but he's all business."
"There's no games, there's no talking about how nice the weather is. Let's look at the stars, let's look at the sun. No, he's all, he's all business," Trump said in an interview with Sean Hannity on Fox News.
"I like that. That's a good thing. No games, I said about him," Trump continued.
Trump has repeatedly complimented Xi's leadership during his visit to Beijing, calling him "a tremendous leader."
U.S. trade representative expects China to buy billions of dollars of U.S. agricultural products
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said that he expects to "see an agreement for double-digit billion purchases" of U.S. agricultural products after Trump's visit to China concludes.
Speaking on Bloomberg TV, Greer was asked if China is complying with prior trade agreements on farm products and he said they have.
Greer also spoke about rare earth elements, critical to the manufacturing of everything from smartphones to electric vehicles to medical diagnostic equipment. He said that "sometimes" China drags its feet on allowing those to be exported, but he would still give the country "a passing grade."
Asked if the ongoing trade truce that the U.S. and China are currently in will be extended after the visit, Greer said, "We'll see about that."
Xi warns Trump of possible conflict over Taiwan at grand Beijing summit
On the first day of U.S.-China talks, Xi warned of “clashes and even conflicts” over Taiwan, cautioning Trump that tensions over the Beijing-claimed island could jeopardize ties between the world’s two biggest economies.
Xi delivered the stark warning as the two leaders met for high-stakes talks in Beijing at the start of their two-day summit. It contrasted with the public praise both men offered as they arrived for a grand welcome ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in the Chinese capital.
The rival superpowers entered the summit divided over thorny issues, including Taiwan, trade disputes and the Iran war, though both Washington and Beijing have sought to prioritize stability in bilateral relations after a turbulent start to Trump’s second term.
Differences in the two countries’ tone at the summit — as well as differing versions of what Trump and Xi discussed — reflected the probable difficulties in bridging those gaps.
U.S. trade representative says chip export controls didn't come up in China meetings
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer was asked in an interview on Bloomberg TV about Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang's joining the trip at the last minute.
Greer chuckled discussing Huang's meeting Air Force One in Alaska and said that in meetings with Chinese officials, "we did not talk about chip export controls."
CEO of Nvidia Jensen Huang (L) and Egyptian-US financial executive and President at Meta Dina Powell McCormick leave after a banquet at the Great Hall of the People, on Thursday. Brendan Smialowski / AFP via Getty Images
The U.S. allows some Nvidia chips to be sold into China; however, they are now multiple generations old, so none have been sold to Chinese customers yet.
Huang's joining the trip had caused Nvidia shares and those of other major tech companies to rally in recent days, as investors thought it was a possible sign of the Chinese market's thawing to U.S. chip suppliers.
Trump said he brought business leaders into meeting with Xi
Trump said tonight that he brought top business leaders who traveled with him to China into his meeting with Xi and discussed how to increase trade between the U.S. and China.
“I suggested that before we start the meeting, I’d like to introduce them to you, and they were surprised, because it wasn’t, you know, it wasn’t scheduled,” Trump said in an interview with Sean Hannity, referring to bringing Elon Musk, Tim Cook, Jensen Huang and other CEOs into the meeting with Chinese officials.
“It’s interesting, because they do business in general, most of them do business here, but probably like to do more, and I’d like to see them do more. That would be good for trade and trade balance, and they were fantastic,” Trump said.
China and U.S. agree Hormuz shouldn’t be ‘militarized,’ Rubio says
Trump discussed the Iran war and the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz during a summit with Xi, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in an interview today, adding that the U.S. was not asking for Beijing’s help with Iran.
“The Chinese side said they are not in favor of militarizing the Straits of Hormuz, and they’re not in favor of a tolling system, and that’s our position,” Rubio said in Beijing after Trump, Xi and their delegations held more than two hours of talks.
During the wide-ranging interview, Rubio — who traveled to Beijing while he is under Chinese sanctions in what appears to be a first for a U.S. secretary of state — said Trump and Xi also discussed the Beijing-claimed island of Taiwan and the case of Jimmy Lai, a pro-democracy publisher in the Chinese territory of Hong Kong who was sentenced to 20 years in prison this year after he was convicted in a landmark national security trial.
Trump and Xi to meet for second day of talks
Trump and Xi are set to meet today for a second round of talks in Beijing, with events that include a photo, tea and a working lunch before Trump heads back to the U.S.
Talks yesterday included a warning from Xi over U.S. policy toward Taiwan, with Xi saying mishandling Beijing’s claim over the self-ruling island could cause “clashes and even conflicts,” China’s foreign ministry said.
Yesterday’s bilateral meeting also touched on the Iran war and the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
