Trump and Xi: The history of encounters between two superpower leaders

United States President Donald Trump’s sojourn to China this week volition people his seventh face-to-face gathering with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

The sojourn volition besides beryllium the archetypal travel by a US person to China since 2017.

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Trump and Xi’s three-day summit, which kicks disconnected connected Wednesday, is expected to absorption connected the US-Israel warfare connected Iran, trade, and the presumption of Taiwan, among different issues.

Here’s a rundown of the past meetings betwixt the leaders of the world’s 2 astir almighty nations:

April 2017 successful Palm Beach, US

The 2 archetypal met astatine Trump’s backstage Mar-a-Lago edifice connected April 6, 2017, conscionable a fewer months into his archetypal term.

At the clip of their meeting, Trump was coming disconnected a statesmanlike run that had heavy criticised China’s commercialized practices and their interaction connected the US economy.

Trump had besides angered China by accepting a congratulatory telephone telephone from then-Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, breaking decades of diplomatic precedent acceptable successful 1979 erstwhile Washington chopped disconnected relations with Taipei.

During their Mar-a-Lago meeting, Trump appeared to physique a idiosyncratic rapport with Xi and said the 2 sides had made “tremendous progress” towards improving US-China relations.

The acme was mostly overshadowed, however, by Trump’s determination to motorboat airstrikes connected Syria, past led by Beijing-backed Bashar al-Assad, during Xi’s visit.

July 2017 successful Hamburg, Germany

Xi and Trump met connected the sidelines of the G20 acme connected July 8, 2017, opening a signifier of engagement that would spot the leaders repeatedly transverse paths astatine large planetary gatherings.

Their gathering focused heavy connected North Korea’s atomic programme and economical ties.

A period later, the Trump Administration fired its archetypal changeable successful the US-China commercialized warfare by launching an probe into alleged theft of US intelligence property.

By invoking Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, the White House would laic the groundwork to enforce punitive tariffs connected China.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and First Lady Peng Liyuan be a meal hosted by US President Donald Trump astatine his Mar-a-Lago property successful West Palm Beach, Florida, connected April 6, 2017 [Carlos Barria/Reuters]

November 2017 successful Beijing, China

Trump landed successful China connected November 8, 2017 for a three-day visit, joined by a delegation of American CEOs and concern leaders.

Trump’s itinerary included watching a Peking opera with Xi and his wife, visits to the Forbidden City and Palace Museum, a ceremonial reception astatine the Great Hall of the People, a authorities banquet, and, finally, a backstage gathering with the Chinese leader.

Trump near China touting $250m successful “business deals” spanning energy, agriculture, and technology, though immoderate of the agreements were tentative oregon covered projects already nether way.

The summit’s affirmative code did not halt Trump from imposing tariffs connected China a fewer months later.

December 2018 successful Buenos Aires, Argentina

Trump and Xi held a meal connected December 1, 2018, connected the sidelines of the G20 summit.

Months earlier, the Trump medication had imposed tariffs connected $250bn worthy of Chinese goods and banned US authorities agencies from utilizing Chinese firms Huawei and ZTE, prompting Beijing to deed backmost with tariffs connected $110bn worthy of US goods.

Despite the tensions, the White House hailed the gathering arsenic “highly successful”, and the sides agreed to statesman negotiations connected outstanding issues, including intelligence spot extortion and cybertheft.

June 2019 successful Osaka, Japan

Trump and Xi came face-to-face astatine the G20 acme connected June 29, 2019.

During their talks, the leaders agreed to a big of measures to de-escalate their rivalry, including a halt to caller US tariffs, much open-ended commercialized negotiations, an easing of restrictions connected Huawei, and a Chinese committedness to bargain much US cultivation exports.

The US and China would months aboriginal motion a “phase one” commercialized deal, nether which Washington agreed to rotation backmost a fig of tariffs and Beijing pledged to bargain $200bn worthy of US goods and services.

China yet did not conscionable its acquisition commitments during the required timeframe, which overlapped with the illness of planetary commercialized owed to the COVID-19 pandemic.

US President Donald Trump attends a bilateral gathering with China’s President Xi Jinping during the G20 leaders acme successful Osaka, Japan, connected June 29, 2019 [Kevin Lamarque/Reuters]

October 2025 successful Busan, South Korea

Trump and Xi held their archetypal gathering successful six years connected the sidelines of the 2025 APEC acme connected October 30, 2025.

The leaders met to widen a truce successful a spiralling tariff warfare that concisely saw the US and China enforce duties of 145 percent and 125 percent, respectively.

Despite the commercialized truce, the Trump medication imposed sector-specific tariffs connected China and restrictions connected Chinese exertion exports successful the run-up to the summit, portion Beijing tightened export controls connected uncommon world minerals.

After their talks, Trump and Xi announced a one-year intermission successful their commercialized war.

Among different measures, the US eased its tariffs, portion China agreed to driblet immoderate of its export restrictions connected uncommon earths and resume purchases of US cultivation exports.