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United States President Donald Trump left China after a three-day trip, showing many trade deals but showing little progress on key issues related to Taiwan or The US-Israel war in Iran.
Trump’s visit, the first of his second term, was packed with events, including greetings from children cared for by an honorary military guard, a private tour of a secret royal garden, and the 15th-century Confucian Temple of Heaven.
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In the end, both sides declared the trip a success, although their accounts of what they agreed to do differed.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump said he and Xi discussed Taiwan, with the Chinese leader telling him he opposes sovereignty over the island that Beijing claims is its own.
“I heard him speak. I never said it,” Trump said. “I didn’t plan anything.”
After greeting Trump on Thursday, Xi said to be invited Taiwan is “the most important issue in China-US relations”.
“If it doesn’t go well, the two countries may collide or clash, putting the whole relationship between China and the US in serious jeopardy,” Xi added.
Trump told reporters on Friday that he had not made a decision on whether to sell US weapons to Taiwan, an issue that has broad support within the US Congress and which Beijing strongly opposes.
The US has no relationship with Taiwan, but over the years has provided billions of dollars in military aid. It acknowledges, but does not accept, Beijing’s claims on the island.
US lawmakers have approved the sale of new weapons to Taipei, which still requires Trump’s signature.
“I will make a decision,” Trump told reporters. “I will make decisions, but you know, I think the last thing we need right now is a war 15,289 miles away.”
For its part, Taiwan’s foreign minister said on Friday Taipei would seek to deepen ties with the US, citing growing regional “threats”.
The US-Israel war in Iran
In Iran, Trump said he and Xi spoke at length about the US-Israel war, and their desire to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Some Trump administration officials have called on Beijing to use it beyond Tehran to help resolve the ongoing stalemate in the ceasefire talks, although the president downplayed the issue during the visit.
The White House has made few announcements about how it is progressing on Trump’s departure.
Trump told reporters on Air Force One that he was “not asking for favors” from Iran.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, speaking to reporters on Friday about Trump’s visit, also hinted that China’s approach to conflict has changed.
“China urges the US and Iran to continue to resolve their conflicts and disputes, including the nuclear issue, through negotiations, and urges the rapid reopening of the Strait of Hormuz on the basis of a ceasefire,” he said.
Commercial activities have been identified
Trump, who traveled with a delegation of major US business leaders, ended his visit acceptance list of “best deals for both countries”.
In an interview with Fox News on Friday, he said that includes China agreeing to buy 200 jets from US aircraft manufacturer Boeing. Such a deal would be the first to buy US contracts in more than a decade.
The White House has also said China may begin buying more US oil and agricultural products.
But details of any agreements were not immediately released, and China has been the focus of attention. No new agreements were announced in China’s statement repeating the visit.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang on Friday said both sides agreed to establish a trade union and economic council. He said that he will continue to negotiate on changing the price of trees and finding the agricultural market.
Trump, meanwhile, has not said whether the trade war agreement reached in October last year, which saw Washington raise tariffs on China and Beijing, threatening to impose restrictions on exports of the world’s rarest minerals, has been extended.
Trump said he and Xi “didn’t talk about tariffs”.
