US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) are seeking strategic stability rather than a “grand deal” during their summit in Beijing, Taiwanese academics said yesterday, adding that establishing better communication mechanisms around trade and the military is their shared goal.
Trump yesterday met with Xi at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing in his first visit to China since returning to the White House and his first state visit there since November 2017.
Based on their opening remarks, Xi focused on US-China relations and global affairs, while Trump highlighted his personal relationship with Xi, said Wang Hsin-hsien (王信賢), a distinguished professor at National Chengchi University’s Graduate Institute of East Asian Studies.
Photo: AFP
Trump attempted to showcase his ability to manage US-China risks to boost his domestic popularity ahead of the US midterm elections in November, Wang said.
The presence of US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Chinese Minister of National Defense Dong Jun (董軍) at the negotiating table is an unusual development, Wang said, adding that it likely reflects concerns over military security, nuclear arms control and US arms sales to Taiwan.
According to a readout from China Central Television, Xi said during the meeting that Taiwan is the most important issue in US-China relations.
If handled well, bilateral relations could remain generally stable, but if handled poorly, clashes or conflicts could occur, pushing relations into a dangerous situation, the Chinese president was quoted as saying.
Taiwanese independence and peace in the Taiwan Strait are as incompatible as “fire and water,” Xi added.
Wang said that Xi’s remarks on Taiwan were stronger than in the past.
By utilizing words such as “collision,” “conflict,” “extremely dangerous” and “fire and water,” Beijing has elevated its characterization of the Taiwan issue, he said, adding that Beijing is hoping for “US-China comanagement of Taiwanese independence.”
Regarding Chinese Vice President Han Zheng (韓正) greeting Trump at the airport, Wang said that although Han has stepped down from the Chinese Communist Party’s Politburo Standing Committee, he remains a national-level leader, meaning Beijing did not lower its reception standards for Trump.
National Cheng Kung University political science professor Wang Hung-jen (王宏仁) said that Xi’s opening remarks attempted to project an image of US-China cogovernance to the international community.
The summit could indeed help stabilize regional dynamics, a result anticipated by neighboring countries, such as Japan and South Korea, which hope to avoid continued friction, he said.
Wang Hung-jen added that Hegseth’s presence alongside Dong showed that the US remains militarily wary of China, and Hegseth might be using the trip to gauge the reality of recent personnel changes in the Chinese People’s Liberation Army.
While the long-term US-China rivalry would not change, the meeting could at least provide short-term stability, Wang Hung-jen said.
Later Thursday, the White House issued a statement about the meeting that made no mention of the Taiwan issue, but included details such as the two sides having discussed ways to enhance bilateral economic cooperation.
Wang said that from Washington’s perspective, Taiwan was never meant to be a major topic in this round of talks, and the U.S. side had no intention of engaging in serious discussions with Beijing on the issue, as there has been no major recent development involving Taiwan.
He said Beijing’s account was therefore "somewhat misleading," as it appeared aimed at creating the impression that the U.S. and China were jointly handling the Taiwan issue, when the White House statement showed that was not the case.
Beijing could be trying to "manipulate the messaging" around the meeting, he added.
Any meaningful concession would have been reflected in Beijing’s official readout of the meeting, said William Yang, a senior analyst for Northeast Asia for International Crisis Group, as Xi’s stark warning to Trump over Taiwan may indicate the U.S. president did not make concessions Thursday.
“The lack of such mention and the relatively stern tone suggest Trump may not have budged on Taiwan in principle,” Yang said.
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