'We're the two superpowers:' Trump arrives in Beijing for talks with Xi on Iran war and trade

US President Donald Trump arrived in Beijing on Wednesday for his hotly anticipated talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the Iran war, trade and US arms sales to Taiwan.

The meat of the summit won't happen until Thursday, when the leaders hold bilateral talks and a formal banquet. But the Chinese offered Trump a pomp-filled welcome, literally rolling out the red carpet for him after Air Force One landed in the Chinese capital.

The president was to be greeted by Chinese Vice President Han Zheng; Xie Feng, China’s ambassador to Washington; Ma Zhaoxu, executive vice minister of foreign affairs; as well as the US envoy to Beijing, David Perdue, according to the White House.

The welcoming ceremony included some 300 Chinese youths, a military honor guard and a military band.

"We're the two superpowers,” Trump told reporters as he departed the White House on Tuesday for the long flight to Beijing. "We're the strongest nation on Earth in terms of military. China’s considered second.”

Donald Trump presents SpaceX, Twitter and electric car maker Tesla CEO Elon Musk (R) to Han Zheng at Beijing Capital Airport. AFP

While Trump likes to project a sense of strength, the visit occurs at a delicate moment for his presidency as his popularity at home has been weighed down by the US and Israel's war with Iran and rising inflation as a consequence of that conflict. The Republican president is seeking a win by signing deals with China to buy more American soybeans, beef and aircraft, saying he'll be talking with Xi about trade "more than anything else.”

The Trump administration hopes to begin the process of establishing a Board of Trade with China to address differences between the countries. The board could help prevent the trade war ignited last year after Trump's tariff hikes, an action China countered through its control of rare earth minerals. That led to a one-year truce last October.

Donald Trump shakes hands with Han Zheng during a welcome ceremony at Beijing Capital International Airport in Beijing. AP

But Trump is visiting Beijing when Iran continues to dominate his domestic agenda. The war has led to the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, stranding oil and natural gas tankers and causing energy prices to spike to levels that could sabotage global economic growth.

The US president declared that Xi didn’t need to assist in resolving the conflict, even though Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was in Beijing last week.

"We have a lot of things to discuss. I wouldn’t say Iran is one of them, to be honest with you, because we have Iran very much under control," Trump told reporters on Tuesday.

The status of Taiwan also will be a major topic as China is displeased with US plans to sell weapons to the self-governing island that the Chinese government claims as part of its own territory.

Trump told reporters Monday that he would be discussing with Xi an $11 billion weapons package for Taiwan that the US administration authorised in December but has not yet begun fulfilling. The arms package is the largest ever approved for Taiwan.

But the US leader has demonstrated greater ambivalence toward Taiwan, an approach that’s raising questions about whether Trump could be open to dialing back support for the island democracy.

At the same time, Taiwan - as the world's leading chipmaker - has become essential for the development of AI, with the US importing more goods so far this year from Taiwan than China. Trump has sought to use Biden-era programs and his own deals to bring more chipmaking to America.

'BIGGEST POINT OF RISK'

The Chinese Communist Party's news outlet, People's Daily, published a strongly worded editorial ahead of Trump's arrival underscoring that Taiwan is "the first red line that cannot be crossed in China-US relations” and is "the biggest point of risk” between the two nations.

Trump was already portraying the trip as a success before he even left White House grounds. He openly mused about Xi's planned reciprocal visit to the US later this year, lamenting that the White House ballroom under construction would not be completed in time to properly fete the Chinese leader.

People gather to get a view of Air Force One, carrying President Donald Trump, arriving at Beijing Capital Airport in Beijing. AFP

"We’re going to have a great relationship for many, many decades to come,” Trump said of the US and China.

Trump embarked on Air Force One for the big meeting with a coterie of aides, family members and business world titans, including Nvidia's Jensen Huang and Tesla and SpaceX's Elon Musk.

While en route to Beijing, he posted on social media that his "first request" to Xi during the visit will be to ask the Chinese leader to bolster the presence of US firms in China.

"I will be asking President Xi, a Leader of extraordinary distinction, to ‘open up’ China so that these brilliant people can work their magic, and help bring the People’s Republic to an even higher level!” wrote Trump, who is expected to receive a formal ceremonial greeting when he arrives in the Chinese capital on Wednesday evening.

Despite Trump’s outward confidence, China appears to be entering the meeting from "a much stronger place," said Scott Kennedy, a senior adviser on Chinese business and economics at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington think tank.

China would like to reduce tech restrictions on accessing computer chips and find ways to reduce tariffs, among other goals.
"But even if they don’t get much on any of those things, as long as there’s not a blow-up in the meeting and President Trump doesn’t go away and look to re-escalate, China basically comes out stronger,” Kennedy said.

Associated Press