Trump meets Xi Jinping for first time in 6 years, calls him ‘great leader’ | World News

US President Donald Trump met his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, in South Korea’s Busan on Thursday (local time) — their first meeting in six years. Trump described Xi as a “very tough negotiator”, adding that he is also a “great leader of a great country”.

 

The meeting, which comes amid the ongoing trade war between the US and China, took place on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) Summit. As the leaders shook hands at Busan air base, the US President said that while the two countries have already agreed to a lot of things, they will agree to some more in this meeting. Trump also expressed optimism in having a “fantastic relationship” with China for a “long period of time”, Bloomberg reported.

 
 

The meeting is also the first between the two leaders after Trump took office in January this year and announced a series of tariffs on China and other countries. The interaction between the two leaders is expected to quell an expansive trade fight, which rattled the global markets. 

 

While a thaw appeared in ties after leaders of the two countries met in Geneva in May and the reciprocal tariffs were cut down significantly, tensions simmered again this month after China planned to expand its export controls to nearly all of its products, including rare earth minerals, which are crucial for global technology supply chains. Calling it an “extraordinarily aggressive” stance on the part of Beijing, Trump announced an additional 100 per cent tariffs on Chinese goods, which were expected to come into effect on November 1.

 

Trump-Xi meeting

 

Xi and Trump are expected to finalise the details of a framework agreement, negotiated over the weekend in Malaysia. Under the deal, China would suspend its rare-earth licensing regime for at least a year, resume soybean imports, and take steps to curb fentanyl production. In return, the US would lower tariffs and consider additional concessions.

 

According to the Bloomberg report, Chinese President Xi Jinping told Trump that he was “ready to continue working with you to build a solid foundation for China-US relations”. He further added that while they “did not always see eye-to-eye” with each other, it is normal for the two leading economies of the world to have friction now and then.

 

Xi reportedly said the economic and trade teams of both countries had reached a preliminary consensus on major issues of concern and made encouraging progress, creating the conditions for their meeting today.

 

During the closed-door meeting, Xi reportedly lauded Trump’s efforts to bring peace to Gaza and his continuous efforts to resolve global conflicts, stating that the two nations can “jointly shoulder our responsibility as major countries and work together to accomplish more” in pursuit of peace.

 

Trump signals tariff cuts amid Beijing’s push for relief

 

On Wednesday, Trump said he expected to lower the 20 per cent tariff imposed on Chinese goods over exports of fentanyl precursor chemicals. He suggested that the new rate could allow China to remain competitive with other manufacturing nations in the region.

 

The reduction in the fentanyl tariffs would come along with Washington scrapping its plans for a 100 per cent tariff, which Trump had threatened to implement, starting November 1. The Trump administration is also expected to roll back levies and fees hitting Chinese ships.

 

China is also expected to urge Washington to revoke a rule that subjects subsidiaries with at least 50 per cent ownership by blacklisted firms to the same restrictions as their sanctioned parent companies. The regulation has increased due diligence requirements for exporters.