President Donald Trump Arrives In Beijing For Summit With Xi, China Warns Of ‘ Four Red Lines’ In Ties With US
New York : President Donald Trump arrived in Beijing on Wednesday for his highly anticipated talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the Iran war, trade and U.S. arms sales to Taiwan. But the Chinese offered Trump a pomp-filled welcome, literally rolling out the red carpet for him after Air Force One landed in the Chinese capital.
The welcoming ceremony includes some 300 Chinese youths, a military honor guard and a military band. We’re the two superpowers, Trump told reporters as he departed the White House on Tuesday. “We’re the strongest nation on Earth in terms of military. China’s considered second. While Trump likes to project a sense of strength, the visit occurs at a delicate moment for his presidency as his popularity at home has been weighed down by the U.S. and Israel’s war with Iran and rising inflation as a consequence of that conflict.
The board could help prevent the trade war ignited last year after Trump’s tariff hikes, an action China countered through its control of rare earth minerals. That led to a one-year truce last October. But Trump visits Beijing when Iran continues to dominate his domestic agenda. The war has led to the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, stranding oil and natural gas tankers and causing energy prices to spike to levels that could sabotage global economic growth.
The status of Taiwan also appears to be a major topic as China is displeased with U.S. plans to sell weapons to the self-governing island that the Chinese government claims as part of its own territory. Trump told reporters Monday that he would be discussing with Xi an $11 billion weapons package for Taiwan that the U.S. administration authorized in December but has not yet begun fulfilling. The arms package is the largest ever approved for Taiwan.
At the same time, Taiwan — as the world’s leading chipmaker — has become essential for the development of AI, with the U.S. importing more goods so far this year from Taiwan than China. Trump has sought to use Biden-era programs and his own deals to bring more chipmaking to America. Trump was already portraying the trip as a success before he left White House grounds.
Trump said he had spoken with the Chinese leader and the meeting would be “positive” as he embarked on Air Force One with a coterie of aides, family members and business world titans, including Nvidia’s Jensen Huang and Tesla and SpaceX’s Elon Musk. Trump, as he flew to Beijing, posted on social media that his “first request” to Xi during the visit will be to ask the Chinese leader to bolster the presence of U.S. firms in China.
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