US President Donald Trump has described his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping as "amazing", saying the two countries have reached an agreement on a rare earths deal and that he will visit China in April. The deal, which includes a 10% reduction in Trump's fentanyl tariffs, is expected to last for one year and be negotiated annually.
According to Trump, the US and China have also agreed to work together on Ukraine, with the US president saying that the war "came up very strongly" during their discussion. However, Taiwan was not discussed, sparking concerns in Taipei that Trump may be willing to make concessions to Xi.
The meeting, which took place at a South Korean airbase, marked the first face-to-face talks between Trump and Xi in six years. The two leaders had previously spoken on the phone and exchanged letters, but this meeting was their first in person since 2019.
Trump described the meeting as "very successful", saying that he and Xi had reached a basic consensus on addressing each other's major concerns. However, he also acknowledged that China buys a lot of Russian oil and did not discuss this topic during their talks.
Xi Jinping also spoke positively about the meeting, saying that China and the US should "stay on the right course" and be partners and friends. He added that the world is confronted by many tough problems and that major countries like China and the US have a responsibility to work together to accomplish more great things for the good of all.
The optimism in Busan was in stark contrast to the recent exchanges of aggressive rhetoric over trade that had threatened to set the US and Chinese on an economic collision course. The two countries had been locked in a trade war, with Trump imposing tariffs on Chinese goods and China retaliating with its own measures.
In response to Beijing's proposal to expand curbs on rare earth exports, Trump vowed to retaliate with additional 100% tariffs on Chinese exports. However, it appears that the agreement reached during their meeting may have eased some of these tensions.
It remains to be seen how this deal will impact the global economy and whether it marks a significant shift in US-China relations.
According to Trump, the US and China have also agreed to work together on Ukraine, with the US president saying that the war "came up very strongly" during their discussion. However, Taiwan was not discussed, sparking concerns in Taipei that Trump may be willing to make concessions to Xi.
The meeting, which took place at a South Korean airbase, marked the first face-to-face talks between Trump and Xi in six years. The two leaders had previously spoken on the phone and exchanged letters, but this meeting was their first in person since 2019.
Trump described the meeting as "very successful", saying that he and Xi had reached a basic consensus on addressing each other's major concerns. However, he also acknowledged that China buys a lot of Russian oil and did not discuss this topic during their talks.
Xi Jinping also spoke positively about the meeting, saying that China and the US should "stay on the right course" and be partners and friends. He added that the world is confronted by many tough problems and that major countries like China and the US have a responsibility to work together to accomplish more great things for the good of all.
The optimism in Busan was in stark contrast to the recent exchanges of aggressive rhetoric over trade that had threatened to set the US and Chinese on an economic collision course. The two countries had been locked in a trade war, with Trump imposing tariffs on Chinese goods and China retaliating with its own measures.
In response to Beijing's proposal to expand curbs on rare earth exports, Trump vowed to retaliate with additional 100% tariffs on Chinese exports. However, it appears that the agreement reached during their meeting may have eased some of these tensions.
It remains to be seen how this deal will impact the global economy and whether it marks a significant shift in US-China relations.
. 10% reduction in fentanyl tariffs is a nice touch, but what I find really interesting is that both Trump and Xi are talking up cooperation on Ukraine 
. Given China's recent actions in the region, it's hard to see how this isn't about trying to isolate Russia 
. The fact that Taiwan wasn't discussed is also concerning, given our ally's growing unease 
. On a more positive note, the deal does mark a shift away from aggressive rhetoric and towards cooperation 
. But let's keep an eye on those 100% tariffs - we don't want to see a repeat of last year's trade war chaos 
! 
. And what about the global rare earths market? China dominates the production of neodymium, which is used in everything from smartphones to wind turbines 
. We'll need to keep a close eye on these trends to see how this deal impacts the economy 
.
... can you imagine what would happen if we lost that supply chain? 
Let's get some charts up on Twitter and break it down further! 
like why would you do that? and Trump thinks he can just visit China in april after all this stress and drama 
it's gonna be interesting to see how this whole deal plays out i mean, 10% reduction on fentanyl tariffs is a big deal 
. But, I gotta say, the Taiwan thing is a bit of a concern for me 
. Trump didn't discuss it with Xi, which is weird. I'm not sure what's going on there, but I hope they can work it out soon 
. The fact that Xi mentioned China and US should be partners and friends is super positive though 
And yeah, it's weird that they didn't discuss China buying Russian oil... but hey, maybe that's not as important as this deal.
I'm not saying the meeting didn't seem positive, Xi Jinping did sound pretty optimistic 
... but Taiwan got left out of the convo, which is a major concern for us 
. But Taipei is getting a bit worried about Taiwan not being discussed... fingers crossed they don't make any big moves 
. Now we just gotta see how this deal plays out and what impact it'll have on the global economy 
... I mean, think about it, China gets what they want (a 10% reduction on those fentanyl tariffs) and the US gets a temporary reprieve from some of that economic pressure 
. But at what cost? We're basically ceding control to China over our own resources 
. Mark my words, this deal is gonna come with some hidden strings attached 
...
AND AS FOR UKRAINE, I HOPE THEY CAN REALLY WORK OUT SOME KIND OF DEAL THAT BENEFITS BOTH COUNTRIES 
... I mean, it's about time, right? I remember when Trump was first elected and everyone thought he'd make trade with China impossible 
. But now we're seeing some progress, albeit small steps 
.
. From what I've seen, it seems like they finally got on the same page about the fentanyl deal and Ukraine 
.
. Now we just have to see if they can keep the momentum going 
. I know China and the US aren't exactly best buds when it comes to that whole issue, so it's kinda weird that Trump didn't even bring it up during their talks.
. Plus, it's cool that they talked about Ukraine - I guess even world leaders can put aside their differences sometimes 
. I'm not gonna lie, I'm still waiting for some solid answers from the US side...
I mean I get why he's trying to make nice with xi but Taiwan's like the most sensitive topic ever