In what was one of the most highly anticipated bilateral meetings of the year, US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping sat down for talks at a military base in South Korea.
The meeting took place against a backdrop of an escalating trade war between the US and China during the past few months.
There had been expectations that the pair would discuss trade, and it appears both leaders followed through, walking away with a deal to reduce tariffs in exchange for resumed US soybean purchases.
But there are few details about other issues they discussed.
From the settling of tariffs to a lengthy discussion about the war in Ukraine — and effusive praise for the Chinese leader — here are the main takeaways.
Trump calls Xi an ‘amazing leader’, rates talks a 12
The highly anticipated sit-down between the two leaders has been a long time coming.
The meeting in the South Korean port city of Busan is the first between Mr Trump and Mr Xi since the US president returned to office in January.
The pair last met in 2019, during Mr Trump’s first term.
Mr Xi told Mr Trump via a translator it was normal for the two leading economies of the world to have frictions now and then. (Reuters: Evelyn Hockstein)
As the two leaders gathered around a table, the Chinese president told his US counterpart via a translator that he was “ready to continue working with you to build a solid foundation for China-US relations”.
He also said it was normal for the two leading economies of the world to have frictions now and then, a pointed reference to their escalating trade war.
Neither leader made any comment about what they discussed immediately after wrapping up.
But Mr Trump later told reporters on Air Force One that it was “an amazing meeting” and the talks were “a great honour”.
“He is a great leader,” Mr Trump said.
He went on to say that on a scale of one to 10, he would rate his meeting with Xi a 12.
“The whole relationship is very, very important,” he said.
In a Chinese readout of the meeting, Mr Xi noted that China and the United States “should be partners and friends”.Â
Tariffs cut, rare earth exports ‘settled’
Mr Trump said he and Mr Xi discussed various trade issues that have flared in recent months and indicated both sides would de-escalate their dispute.
The Chinese leader appeared to echo this sentiment, noting in a readout that both sides had reached a consensus to resolve “major trade issues”.
One of the biggest takeaways from the meeting was that Mr Trump had struck a deal with Mr Xi to reduce tariffs on Beijing in exchange for resumed US soybean purchases.
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In May, China stopped buying soybeans from the US and pivoted to other export markets, like Brazil, in a targeted strike against America’s farming industry.
The tariffs imposed on Chinese imports will now be cut to 47 per cent from 57 per cent.
Mr Trump also told reporters that he and Mr Xi would crack down on the illicit trade of fentanyl and work to keep rare earth exports flowing.
“All of the rare earth [issue] is settled … This was a worldwide situation and not just a US situation,” Mr Trump told reporters.
“There’s no roadblock from China anymore.”
Beijing, which controls 90 per cent of refined rare earth production, recently tightened its grip over exports of the materials, which are vital for high-tech manufacturing like military equipment, automobiles, wind turbines, and mobile phones.
While America is looking for ways to circumvent China’s stranglehold on the industry, including reaching a recent deal with Australia to build an alternative, it remains reliant on the rival superpower.
Xi stresses need for ‘dialogue’ over confrontation
While Mr Trump touted the meeting as a resounding success, China’s foreign ministry emphasised the need for the two nations to work together.
“President Xi stressed that dialogue is better than confrontation,” a readout from China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated.
Mr Trump met with Mr Xi shortly after saying he would order the resumption of US nuclear weapons testing. (Reuters: Evelyn Hockstein)
It added that Mr Xi acknowledged that the two nations “do not always see eye to eye”.
“In the face of winds, waves and challenges, we should stay the right course, navigate through the complex landscape, and ensure the steady sailing forward of the giant ship of China-US relations,” it summarised.
The readout also highlighted Mr Trump’s praise for China.
“President Trump said that it is a great honour to meet President Xi. China is a great country. President Xi is a well-respected great leader.”
The US president’s aggressive turn to tariffs this year left many nations scrambling to strike new trade deals, but China retaliated with its own countermeasures.
This was a point Chinese nationalist media have chalked up as a win for Beijing.
One of the top search results on the social media platform Tencent after the two leaders sat down was an online video from the Alpha Military channel.
“China alone not only refused to compromise but also implemented corresponding countermeasures, compelling the US to sit at the negotiating table,” it reported.
“America can no longer bully it at will.”
Before the meeting, both Japan and South Korea firmed up pledges to invest hundreds of billions of dollars in the US as part of a deal to reduce tariffs.
China, on the other hand, demonstrated it would not back down from a trade war.
“It is evident that China has become the sole nation globally with both the capability and willingness to confront America’s tariff bullying,” a report on Weibo stated.
The pair discussed Ukraine, but Taiwan ‘never came up’
Among the other things the two leaders discussed was the war in Ukraine.
Mr Trump said the country came up “very strongly” during his meeting with Mr Xi, and the two talked about it for a long time.
Mr Trump later told reporters what the pair discussed. (Reuters: Evelyn Hockstein)
“We agree that the sides are locked in fighting and sometimes you gotta let them fight, I guess. But we’re going to work together on Ukraine,” he told reporters.
Taiwan, on the other hand, “never came up” and was “not discussed”, Mr Trump said.
There was concern in the lead-up to the meeting that Mr Trump’s “transactional” approach to diplomacy could play into China’s hands, especially on the thorny issue of Taiwan.
But instead of mentioning the island, the two discussed the US president’s future trip to China.
Mr Trump said he will fly to the communist nation in April, and said Mr Xi would come to the US “sometime after that”. The plans were confirmed in a Chinese readout of the meeting.
After the two leaders met, they shook hands again and made their way to the airport in separate motorcades.
Mr Xi travelled to the city of Gyeongju, where the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit is being held, while Trump is bound for Washington, DC.
Surprise nuclear announcement
Ahead of the meeting with Mr Xi, Mr Trump appeared to ratchet up pressure on his Chinese counterpart with the announcement that the United States would immediately restart nuclear weapons tests.
Mr Xi’s meeting with Mr Trump was the first since the US president resumed office. (Reuters: Yonhap)
He ordered the US Department of Defense to immediately resume testing nuclear weapons on an “equal basis” with other nuclear powers.
It would be the first test in more than 30 years.
“Because of other countries’ testing programs, I have instructed the Department of War to start testing our nuclear weapons on an equal basis. That process will begin immediately,” Mr Trump said on Truth Social.
“Russia is second, and China is a distant third, but will be even within five years.”
When asked about the decision onboard Air Force One, Trump reiterated his earlier message that it “had to do with others” but suggested the announcement was not related to China.