Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) is to meet US President Donald Trump next week in Florida, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday, ending weeks of speculation that they were set for face-to-face discussions on thorny issues dividing the world’s top two economies.
The visit, which is to take place at Trump’s resort Mar-a-Lago follows a rocky start to US-China relations under the billionaire politician, who has repeatedly blasted Beijing for its trade policies, and reluctance to bring pressure on North Korea over its nuclear and missile programs.
The meeting, which is scheduled for Friday and Saturday next week, could be crucial in setting the tone of the relationship between the two powers in coming years.
Before arriving in the US, Xi is to pay a state visit to Finland, his first to the EU this year, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Lu Kang (陸慷) told reporters at a news conference.
Just weeks ago the summit seemed a distant possibility after Trump infuriated Beijing with suggestions he might break from the US’ long-standing “one China” policy.
However, in a conciliatory telephone call last month, the US president walked back controversial comments on Taiwan, creating an opening for Washington and Beijing to discuss a meeting.
Details of the meeting were reportedly hammered out during subsequent visits by Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi (楊潔篪) to Washington and US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to Beijing.
Diplomatic sources in Beijing said that the meetings will primarily focus on giving the two leaders an opportunity to get to know each other, likely reserving tough issues for future talks.
“The summit could well be a peaceful combination of a strategic kumbaya and economic gift giving, before storms erupt later over trade, regional hotspots and human resources issues,” said Douglas Paal, Asia Director at the Washington-based Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
However, it will be hard to avoid discussion of the many tensions that separate the two nations.
“The substantive focus of that meeting, if any, and of the US-China relationship going forward, is likely to revolve around the issues the Trump administration has signaled it has a strong interest in: trade, North Korea, South China Sea and Taiwan policy,” said Henry Levine, a senior adviser to the Albright Stonebridge Group, who previously worked on China issues for the US government.
Trump has threatened to slap punitive tariffs of up to 45 percent on Chinese goods and pledged during his election campaign to label China a currency manipulator.
Relations have been strained by China’s fierce opposition to a US missile defense system being rolled out in South Korea to protect against attacks from North Korea.
Beijing has been reluctant to put pressure on Pyongyang, its neighbor and historic ally, for fear of destabilizing its neighbor.
On Feb. 18, in what was widely interpreted as a gesture to the US, Chinese authorities announced a halt to imports of coal from North Korea, but customs data show that China last month imported nearly US$100 million worth of coal, up 40 percent from a year earlier.
Xi would be the second world leader since Trump took office to visit Mar-a-Lago, which Trump has dubbed the “Winter White House.”
The US president last month hosted Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at the estate in a meeting billed as an opportunity to bond over rounds of golf in an environment conducive to building the kinds of personal relationships that Trump is said to view as important.
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