Chinese President Xi Jinping warned President Donald Trump during their Beijing summit that mishandling Taiwan could lead the two countries to “clash” or even come into conflict, according to China’s state broadcaster Xinhua. Xi added that if the issue is handled properly, bilateral relations can remain generally stable.
The visit came as the war with Iran loomed and threatened economic effects at home; China is a major buyer of Iranian oil, a point U.S. officials hoped to leverage in talks. In their meeting, Trump and Xi also discussed the crisis in the Persian Gulf and agreed the Strait of Hormuz must remain open. Xinhua reported Xi opposed militarization of the strait or any effort to charge a toll, and expressed interest in buying more American oil to reduce China’s dependence on the waterway. Both leaders reportedly agreed that Iran must never acquire a nuclear weapon.
The two-hour-plus bilateral session at the Great Hall of the People covered a range of issues beyond security: investment and economic cooperation, trade and purchasing commitments, fentanyl, and increasing Chinese purchases of U.S. farm products. Pool reporters said the meeting lasted about 2 hours and 15 minutes.
A White House official called the discussion “good,” but the administration’s readout made no mention of Taiwan, despite Xi’s earlier public warning that the island is the most important issue in China-U.S. relations and could push the relationship into a very dangerous situation if mishandled.
Ahead of the talks, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Fox News the U.S. would press China to take a more active role in persuading Iran to stand down, stressing that any Chinese support for Iran would harm U.S.-China ties. Trump echoed that Iran would be a key topic, saying the U.S. had Iran “very much under control” and insisting the outcome would favor the United States.
The summit opened with a dramatic welcome ceremony and warm personal exchanges. Trump praised Xi as a “great leader” and recounted a history of resolving problems through direct contact; Xi said the two countries “both stand to gain from cooperation and lose from confrontation” and should be partners rather than rivals.
Trump described the visit as historic and “extremely positive and productive,” extending an invitation for Xi to visit the United States on Sept. 24. The U.S. delegation included high-profile officials—Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, U.S. Ambassador to China David Perdue, and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer—and several CEOs who accompanied the president to promote business deals: Elon Musk (Tesla/SpaceX), Tim Cook (Apple), Jensen Huang (NVIDIA), along with the president’s son Eric Trump and daughter-in-law Lara Trump.
One White House goal was to secure Chinese purchasing agreements in aerospace, agriculture and energy; Trump said he had invited only top global executives to press those aims. China’s Foreign Ministry described the meetings as providing strategic guidance for China-U.S. relations and said both sides were ready to expand cooperation and manage differences with equality, respect and mutual benefit.
ABC News reporters contributed to the coverage of the summit.