U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed during talks in Beijing to expand cooperation in trade and agriculture, and also discussed the situation in the Middle East, Ukraine, and on the Korean Peninsula, according to CCTV.
The meeting took place on May 14 at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing during Trump’s state visit to China. According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry and Xinhua News Agency, the leaders of the two countries discussed the bilateral agenda and exchanged views on key international and regional issues, including the situation in the Middle East, the crisis in Ukraine, and the Korean Peninsula.
Xi Jinping stated that China and the U.S. should build “constructive and strategically stable relations,” and also emphasized the importance of a cautious approach to the Taiwan issue, calling it the most critical aspect of Sino-American relations. According to Xi, mishandling this issue could lead to a sharp deterioration in bilateral relations.
According to the official Chinese account of the talks, Trump expressed his readiness to work with Xi to strengthen communication and cooperation, resolve differences, and develop U.S.-China relations. He also introduced the Chinese leader to representatives of American business who had traveled to China with him.
The talks took place against the backdrop of efforts to maintain the trade truce between the U.S. and China, reached in October 2025. Topics discussed included U.S. companies’ access to the Chinese market, Chinese investment in the U.S., trade, energy, and agricultural supplies.
For Ukraine, the very fact that the Ukrainian issue was discussed at the level of U.S. and Chinese leaders is significant. Beijing retains influence over Moscow and remains one of the key external players whose stance shapes the diplomatic context surrounding the war. However, the published reports do not indicate that the parties reached any specific agreements specifically regarding Ukraine.
The situation in the Middle East was a separate topic of discussion. Against the backdrop of tensions surrounding Iran and risks to energy supplies, the U.S. is interested in China playing a more active role in mitigating risks to global trade and energy routes. Washington is also seeking economic outcomes from the meeting, including trade and investment agreements.
Raphaël Glucksmann, a member of the European parliament and the lead socialist candidate in France in the upcoming EU elections, has urged Emmanuel Macron to be “firm” against China and “not to remain silent in the face of the crimes” against the Uyghurs.
In an interview with France Inter radio on Monday morning he said it was wrong to roll out the red carpet in the way Macron has for the Chinese president.
“You can receive him, you can talk to anyone, but not like this. Not by taking him to the vacation village of his childhood, to his grandfather’s house, not, as the Élysée puts it, by giving this visit a friendly setting because Xi Jinping is not our friend. In addition to deporting the Uyghur people, repressing the Tibetans and Hong Kongers, suppressing opponents and threatening the Taiwanese.”
Glucksmann also claimed that China is killing French green tech putting solar panel companies out of business with its cut-price alternatives.
“We used to have solar panel champions in France and Europe. Today, how many companies produce solar panels in France? There’s only one left.
He added: “What I want for us is to no longer be the gall guys,” he said noting that when Canada sees distortions in trade with the Chinese it imposed tariffs of over 200%. “In Europe they charge 15%. That’s not a deterrent.”
Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan this week, Chinese media reported on Monday, citing the Chinese Foreign Ministry.
Xi will attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Samarkand and will visit Kazakhstan from September 14 to September 16, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said.
As previously reported, Russian President Vladimir Putin plans to hold a meeting with Chinese President Xi on the sidelines of the SCO summit in Samarkand.
The SCO summit will be held in Samarkand on September 15-16.
