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US PRESIDENT DONALD Trump has landed in Beijing for a high-stakes summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping aimed at easing deep tensions between the rival superpowers.
Beginning the first visit to China by a US president in nearly a decade, Trump touched down on Air Force One at Beijing Capital International Airport at 7.50pm (12.50pm Irish time) after the long flight from Washington.
Ructions over Iran, trade and Taiwan loom over the highly anticipated meeting between the leaders of the world’s largest economies, which Trump had already delayed from March because of the war in the Middle East.
But Trump appeared firmly focused on business deals, with Nvidia chief Jensen Huang boarding the plane at the last minute in Alaska and Tesla’s Elon Musk also travelling on the presidential jet.
As the global AI race hots up, China is currently banned from purchasing the cutting-edge chips that Huang’s company produces under US export rules that Washington says are to protect national security.
In a Truth Social post while en-route, Trump said he will ask Xi Jinping to “open up” China to American firms “so that these brilliant people can work their magic, and help bring the People’s Republic to an even higher level!”.
A host of other top CEOs, including Apple’s Tim Cook, will also be in Beijing for the visit, the first by a US president to China in nearly a decade.
Trump and Xi will hold talks in Beijing’s opulent Great Hall of the People on Thursday, where they will also enjoy a state banquet in the evening.
On Friday, they are set to have tea and a working lunch before the US president heads home.
As he departed the White House, Trump said he expected a “long talk” with Xi about Iran, which sells most of its US-sanctioned oil to China.
But he also downplayed disagreements, telling reporters that “I don’t think we need any help with Iran” from China and that Xi had been “relatively good” on the topic.
‘Big deal’
Yet Beijing is growing impatient for peace, with China’s foreign minister urging his Pakistani counterpart on Tuesday to step up mediation efforts between Iran and the US.
Trump said Monday he would speak to Xi about US arms sales to Taiwan, the self-governing democracy claimed by China – a departure from historic US insistence that it will not consult Beijing on its support to the island.
China’s controls on rare earth exports, AI rivalry and the countries’ raucous trade relationship are also among the topics expected to be taken up by the heads of the world’s top two economies.
The two sides are set to discuss extending a one-year truce in their tariff war, which Trump and Xi reached during their last meeting in South Korea in October.
The tense build-up to the superpower summit was already visible on the streets of Beijing, with police monitoring major intersections and checking the ID cards of passengers on the metro, AFP journalists saw.
“It’s definitely a big deal,” said Wen Wen, a 24-year-old woman travelling from the eastern city of Nanjing, when asked by AFP about Trump’s visit.
“Some progress will certainly be made,” she said, noting that she hopes China and the United States can ensure “lasting peace” despite “recent instability in the global situation”.
Trump has repeatedly touted a strong personal relationship with Xi, which he insisted on Monday would prevent a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, the self-ruled island claimed by Beijing.
“I think we’ll be fine. I have a very good relationship with President Xi. He knows I don’t want that to happen,” he said.
Trump’s trip will be closely scrutinised by Taiwan and Asian allies for any sign of weakening US support.
Beijing has grown more confident and assertive since Trump’s 2017 trip and the US president finds himself in a weakened position as he seeks a way out of his Iran war.
But the summit also comes at an uncertain time for China’s economy, which has struggled in recent years with sluggish domestic spending and a protracted debt crisis in the once-booming property sector.
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