Trump and Xi Score Own Wins From China Summit

President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping have walked away with largely symbolic wins from their two-day summit, which was heavy on pageantry but light on policy.

Trump said China was interested in buying some more beans and planes from American producers but did not confirm details of any deals or purchases. He said the two sides also felt “very similar” on how they want the war in Iran to end.

The U.S. president was effusive in his praise of the Chinese leader and the country throughout the trip, which culminated in a rare tour on Friday of Zhongnanhai, the heavily-guarded government complex at the heart of elite Chinese politics.

"This has been an incredible visit," Trump told reporters. "I think a lot of good has come of it. We’ve made some fantastic trade deals-great for both countries."

Beijing said the visit had "deepened mutual trust" between the leaders, who have differing core national security concerns. China has sought to lower the risk of conflict- emphasizing this trip the need for stability in the relationship to avoid future conflict.

"The tone of both Xi and Trump’s remarks was positive. Xi’s comments in particular tried to align the meeting with China’s touchpoints of national rejuvenation and opening up, as well as nudging the U.S. towards a G2 construct where Washington and Beijing take particular responsibility in guiding global affairs," Raymond Kuo, vice president of geostrategy research at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, said of the summit.

Trump’s Wins: Iran and Some Business Optimism

Business was at the forefront of Trump's mind at Thursday's talks, as evidenced by the unusually large group of American executives he had hand-picked for the high-level political summit.

Such was his eagerness to secure greater market access for U.S. firms, Trump later said he convinced Xi to meet with the company heads, throwing off the official itinerary.

"They were surprised because…you know, it wasn’t scheduled," he told Fox News' Sean Hannity in an interview that aired on Thursday evening Eastern Time.

"Most of them do business here, but probably would like to do more. And I’d like to see them do more-that would be good for trade and trade balance," he said.

Not only did Xi accommodate Trump's request to meet with Elon Musk, Tim Cook and others, the Chinese leader said "American businesses will enjoy broader prospects in China," according to the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

However no details of any deals or breakthroughs on market access had been made public as of Friday.

The U.S. had also gone into China seeking Beijing’s influence to help find an end to the war in Iran given China is close to Tehran and the top buyer of its oil.

On Friday the Chinese statement recapping the talks confirmed that both countries wanted the Strait of Hormuz re-opened for international shipping and Beijing did not want Tehran to have a nuclear weapon. Both those positions have been long held by China.

Trump said at Zhongnanhai, while seated next to Xi: "We feel very similar on Iran. We want that to end. We don't want them to have a nuclear weapon. We want the strait open."

Xi did not correct Trump, and a Chinese Foreign Ministry statement on the issue notably stopped short of placing direct blame on the U.S. for launching the war, or for its ongoing naval blockade against Iranian ports.

However it did note that the war, which it said was having a significant impact on the global economy, should not have begun.

“To find an early way to resolve the situation is in the interest of not only the U.S. and Iran, but also regional countries and the rest of the world," the Chinese statement said.

Xi’s Wins: Taiwan and Taking The Lead

Trump’s deferential visit to Beijing has also delivered wins for the Chinese leader. Trump's rich praise for Xi's leadership and repeated remarks characterizing him as a friend, has elevated China to peer status, above that of America's neighbors and allies.

According to the Chinese readout, Trump called Xi “an old friend of mine,” saying “I have great respect for him”.

“I am willing to maintain sincere and in-depth communication with President Xi Jinping and warmly look forward to hosting him in Washington.”

The U.S. invitation for Xi to return in September for his first state visit in over a decade will also come as vindication for his hardline approach to dealing with Trump last year – having gone blow for blow last year in the tariff war.

That saw the world’s two largest economies impose triple-digit tariffs on each other and China restrict rare earth exports to the U.S. which critically relies on those minerals for manufacturing.

Xi had the upper hand in the summit here and took the lead in clearly stating China’s boundaries. The top issue at the heart of U.S- China relations for Xi wasn’t trade, as Trump had prioritized, but Taiwan.

He warned Trump about the dangers of supporting the self-ruled island democracy which Beijing views as a rogue breakaway state and which it will be united with eventually, perhaps by force. He also made clear that the U.S. stance on Taiwan would be linked to the economic relationship.

"The U.S. side must exercise extra caution in handling the Taiwan question," a Chinese readout of the talks quoted Xi as saying, in an unusually frank message to Trump.

And Trump seemed to abide by that message on the visit. When standing next to Xi during a press event, he repeatedly ignored questions from reporters asking if Xi had broached the topic.

The White House's readout also did not reference Taiwan, although the U.S. stance was later confirmed by the more hawkish Secretary of State Marco Rubio in his comments to media.

Hard Work Begins Now

"More broadly, I’m sure the Taiwanese are happy that Rubio said the U.S.’ policy towards Taiwan hasn’t changed, seeming to shrug off Chinese warnings. And while the tone of conversation has evidently been positive, I’m skeptical about the lasting agreements that will come from this visit," Kuo told Newsweek.

"China and the U.S. can refrain from hurting each other through tariffs and restrictions on rare earths, in marked contrast to the economic tit-for-tat we saw last year. But durable agreements on positive, proactive steps both sides can take-those require credible commitment," Kuo said.

"The U.S. is in a particularly difficult position due to the lack of mid-level preparation and interagency coordination, as well as the ongoing entanglement of the Iran war. It’s going to be challenging to create those lasting deals given these problems, so I would anticipate fairly discrete commitments: specific amounts of Chinese purchases of U.S. agricultural products, targeting lifting of export controls, as has happened for Nvidia," he said.

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This story was originally published May 15, 2026 at 1:56 AM.