Trump and Xi stress cooperation and stable ties at White House meeting
Both leaders spoke of cooperation on trade, technology and AI and agreed to extend a trade truce until January 10.
At the start of their meeting at the White House, U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered messages urging stable relations between the two largest world economies, with attention on trade, technology and artificial intelligence.
Key topics
Trump stressed his personal rapport with Xi, saying the two leaders had built “a real, great friendship.” He added that their talks would also cover security, technology and “superintelligence,” and he suggested that decisions in those fields could help bring peace and prosperity for decades to come.
Xi said competition between the United States and China should be “healthy” and operate within clear boundaries. He urged both countries to boost communication, look for shared interests and set aside differences in order to build mutual trust.
The meeting comes against a backdrop of continuing disagreement over trade, artificial intelligence, Taiwan and Iran. The two sides agreed on Wednesday to extend their trade truce until January 10.
In the run-up to the meeting, the major U.S. television networks declined to provide the usual pooled video of the event in solidarity with CNN, MS NOW and Politico, outlets that the White House had restricted access to.
Officials on both sides framed the encounter as an attempt to steady a volatile bilateral relationship and to manage rivalry in strategic technologies while keeping diplomatic channels open.
Photo: press material from the event
