Trump-Xi bonhomie set to continue, leaders announce two more meetings

Trump-Xi bonhomie set to continue, leaders announce two more meetings
The two leaders held a 90-minute closed-door meeting on Thursday. According to the Chinese government’s readout, they discussed the Middle East, Ukraine and the Korean Peninsula. The White House did not release details of those talks.

US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are set to meet twice more this year, with the two leaders agreeing to hold talks in China in November and again at the G20 summit in Miami in December, after Xi’s three-day state visit to Washington ended on Friday.Trump said Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, had left Washington and were heading back to China, describing their talks as a meeting of “Friendship, Strength, and Success” for both countries.“We will be meeting again in November, in China, and then at the G20 in December, in Miami, Florida,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social. “Much has been, and will be, accomplished. I look forward to our next meeting!”Xi had invited Trump and first lady Melania Trump to China for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Shenzhen in November. He also said the two leaders could meet again in December at the G20 summit at Trump’s National Doral golf club in Miami.“We do welcome Mr. President and the first lady to visit China,” Xi said.Trump responded, “We will, and we’ll be speaking a lot.”

Summit ends with no major breakthrough

The latest meeting was held as the US and China sought to maintain a stable relationship between the world’s two largest economies. However, the summit did not produce major breakthroughs on issues including trade and the safety of artificial intelligence.The two leaders held a 90-minute closed-door meeting on Thursday. According to the Chinese government’s readout, they discussed the Middle East, Ukraine and the Korean Peninsula. The White House did not release details of those talks.

Xi’s final day in Washington

Before leaving the US, Trump took Xi to the National Archives, where the Declaration of Independence, the US Constitution and the Bill of Rights are held.Trump said he wanted to show Xi “some of the greatest treasures of that proud history” as the US marks its 250th anniversary.The two leaders also visited exhibits highlighting the history of US-China relations. Trump had earlier shown Xi a copy of the Declaration of Independence displayed in the Oval Office.“Just as our ancestors reached across the ocean centuries ago to trade, to learn, and to build a better world, our two countries do really the same thing, and we’re very proud of it,” Trump said.Xi’s visit also included a meeting with Trump and Melania Trump at the White House, as well as a state dinner attended by technology industry leaders. Melania Trump and Peng visited the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art.The visit came during China’s Mid-Autumn Festival, when families traditionally gather to mark the end of the harvest.The high-profile welcome for Xi came as Trump campaigns ahead of the November US midterm elections, during which he has sought to portray Democrats as communists. His warm reception for the Chinese leader has added another dimension to that political messaging.

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