Inside Trump-Xi’s high-stakes meeting

A red-carpet welcome, ceremonial honours, high-stakes talks and a carefully watched handshake: Donald Trump and Xi Jinping’s meeting brought the world’s two biggest economies into focus. As the US and Chinese leaders met in Washington, trade, technology, Taiwan and global tensions shaped the conversation.

Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Washington for his first visit to the US capital in more than a decade, setting the stage for a closely watched summit with Donald Trump. Trump and First Lady Melania Trump personally welcomed Xi and his wife Peng Liyuan at Joint Base Andrews, with a red-carpet reception, military band and ceremonial honours marking the start of the high-profile visit.

The ceremonial welcome continued at the White House, where Trump hosted Xi with military honours and a formal review.

Trade was among the biggest issues hanging over the summit. Ahead of the leaders' meeting, US and Chinese officials agreed to extend their existing trade truce, which had been due to expire in November. The extension was intended to prevent another immediate escalation in tariffs, but it did not resolve the deeper trade disputes between Washington and Beijing.

Trump and Xi also exchanged symbolic gifts.

Trump presented Xi Jinping with a bald eagle representing America.

Xi also added a softer touch to the summit by announcing that two giant pandas would soon head to Atlanta.

'US very happy,' says President Donald Trump

Trump said the visit was a positive development for both countries and indicated he was open to accepting Xi’s invitation to visit China in the future.

The summit also featured a lavish state dinner hosted by Trump and Melania Trump, adding ceremony to the high-stakes diplomatic engagement. The reception was part of a broader effort to project warmth and stability in the relationship. Yet the pageantry came alongside unresolved disagreements over trade, AI, Taiwan and wider geopolitical tensions between the two countries.

The meeting ended with both leaders emphasising the importance of the relationship, but there was no clear breakthrough on the biggest strategic disagreements. The trade truce was extended, while questions surrounding other geopolitical and global issuesremained. The summit nevertheless provided an opportunity for Washington and Beijing to keep dialogue open and manage tensions between the two competing powers.