Key facts
- US President Donald Trump met with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the White House.
- Xi Jinping proposed extensive cooperation to avoid military conflict and foster mutual gain.
- Xi Jinping called for strengthened communication and regular military dialogue between the US and China.
- The meeting occurred amid intense competition over artificial intelligence and trade.
- A truce on tariffs between the US and China has been extended until February.
US President Donald Trump met with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the White House this week for discussions on artificial intelligence, trade, and ways to prevent military conflict between the two nations. Xi Jinping proposed extensive cooperation and mutual understanding to steer the superpowers away from a collision course, citing the 'Thucydides trap' as a phenomenon to be overcome.
During the summit, Xi Jinping called for strengthened communication and regular dialogue between the militaries of China and the United States to improve crisis communication and prevention. He also extended an invitation for 100,000 young Americans to visit China on student exchanges. Trump welcomed Xi, noting it was the first time a Chinese leader had made a second state visit to the US, and highlighted their personal relationship and progress on trade issues.
The meeting took place amid intense competition between the two countries over artificial intelligence, with the US implementing export controls on advanced technology to slow China's development. A truce on tariffs, initially set to expire in November, has been extended until February, indicating ongoing dissatisfaction with trade concessions. Despite trade tensions, China's imports into the US have surged, with the country on track for a $1 trillion trade surplus for the second consecutive year. Notable tech leaders, including Jensen Huang of Nvidia, Mark Zuckerberg of Meta, Tim Cook of Apple, Elon Musk of SpaceX and Tesla, and Sam Altman of OpenAI, attended a state dinner hosted by Trump for Xi.