Trade, Iran War, Taiwan: US President Donald Trump Departs For China For High-Stakes Talks With Xi- What's on Agenda?

New Delhi: U.S. President Donald Trump departed on Tuesday for a high-stakes, three-day visit to China, marking the first in-person dialogue with President Xi since the two leaders brokered a trade war truce six months ago.

The much-anticipated meeting between Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to feature discussions on several aspects of bilateral ties, with Trump indicating that trade would be a key topic on the agenda. 

The visit will mark Trump's seventh face-to-face meeting with Xi and the first trip by a US President to China since 2017. 

The summit, deferred from its original March date due to the US-Israeli conflict involving Iran, transpires as President Trump seeks a significant diplomatic triumph amidst domestic discontent over the ongoing Middle East “quagmire.”

Blow To Economy

The conflict has placed considerable strain on US-China relations and dealt a blow to Beijing's economy. 

The Iranian closure of the Strait of Hormuz, coupled with Washington's maritime blockade of Iranian ports, has left Chinese vessels stranded and crippled crude oil imports, half of which China sources from the Middle East.

During the talks, President Trump is expected to reiterate his demand for Beijing to participate in an "international operation" to reopen the vital Strait of Hormuz, a proposal China has resisted thus far. Conversely, President Xi is anticipated to push for concessions on trade, rare-earth minerals, and a formal US recognition of China's claims over “self-ruling Taiwan.”

Melania not accompanying Trump

Also, First Lady Melania Trump will not be accompanying US President Trump to China during this visit, as per the White House.  Ahead of his departure for China, Trump interacted with the media and expressed optimism about the visit. 

In a message to the Chinese people, he said the trip would help forge stronger ties between the two nations for decades to come. 

"We're going to have a great relationship for many, many decades to come. My relationship with President Xi is a fantastic one. We've always gotten along and we're doing very well with China. Working with China's been very good. So we look forward to it", Trump said. 

He also told the media, “You're going to see that good things are going to happen. This is going to be a very exciting trip.” 

When asked if Xi Jinping would help in making a deal with Iran, Trump said, “It might be. I don't think we need any help with Iran. They're defeated militarily, and they'll either do the right thing or we'll finish the job. They're either going to do the right thing or we're just going to finish the job.” 

The US President told the media that among the several items for discussions with China, trade would be a key focus area. 

What's on agenda?

"We're going to be talking with President Xi about a lot of different things. I would say more than anything else will be trade," he said.

Trump is accompanied by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, White House Deputy Chief of Staff James Blair, Deputy National Security Advisor Robert Gabriel, Ambassador Jamieson Greer, and Ambassador Monica Crowley aboard Air Force One. 

Others accompanying President Trump are White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations Beau Harrison, White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy and Homeland Security Advisor Stephen Miller, Assistant to the President & White House Director of Communications Steven Cheung, and President's Science and Tech Advisor Michael Kratsios. 

Also aboard Air Force One are Eric Trump, Lara Trump, Ross Worthington and Walt Nauta. 

Earlier, a White House official said that over a dozen business and tech leaders representing major companies across technology, finance, defence, and consumer sectors would be a part of the American delegation. 

(With ANI inputs)

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