Xi and Trump Chart Course for China-US Relations

Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump met at the White House, with Xi describing their role as charting the course for bilateral relations and inviting the Trumps to visit China. Trump called the meeting "very productive," stating "extraordinary things will happen." During the tea reception, Xi emphasized a constructive relationship based on strategic stability, respect, fairness, and reciprocity, noting two future meeting opportunities at the APEC summit in China and the G20 in the US. US Ambassador David Purdue reiterated that Chinese aid to Iran would be "absolutely unacceptable," while Washington's Taiwan policy remains unchanged. Major media outlets characterized the summit as heavy on ceremony but light on substance, with the Financial Times noting "pomp prevails over substance." The most tangible outcome was a two-month extension of the trade truce, while US airlines resist Xi's proposal to increase direct flights due to competitive disadvantages from Chinese carriers' access to Russian airspace.