Trump Says "Trade Over Iran" as He Prepares for Summit with Xi Jinping (Comprehensive)

In-depth Discussions on the Iran Issue Expected

"China's Top Agenda Is the Taiwan Strait Issue"

Reuters Yonhap News

U.S. President Donald Trump, heading to Beijing for a summit with China for the first time in nine years, stated that "above all, trade will be the main topic" of discussion. This response contrasts with expectations that he would ask China, which is covertly supporting Iran, to mediate an end to the war. He drew a clear line by saying, "Iran will not be one of the major agenda items."

Before departing the White House on the 12th (local time) to attend the summit in Beijing, President Trump told reporters, "We have a lot to discuss." When asked specifically about the message he would deliver to President Xi Jinping regarding the Iran war, he replied, "We will hold long discussions about that," and added, "Iran is being well managed by us (the United States), and either we will reach an agreement, or they will be wiped out."

U.S. Soybeans, Boeing, and Beef Exports and Trade Expected as Core Agenda

AFP Yonhap News

The trade-related agenda items mentioned by President Trump include extending the tariff dispute truce, China's purchase of U.S. agricultural products and aircraft, and follow-up measures on fentanyl smuggling issues. There are especially high expectations for export contracts involving U.S. soybeans, beef, and Boeing aircraft. These three items account for about 12 percent of total U.S. exports to China.

The list of U.S. business leaders accompanying the visit includes CEOs from Tesla, Apple, Meta, Blackstone, Micron Technology, as well as leaders of companies such as the feed producer Cargill and Boeing. According to a source familiar with the matter who spoke to Bloomberg, "All of them have a significant business presence in China and represent sectors related to the trade agenda of this visit."

However, Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia, was excluded from the list. Ryan Fedasiuk, a researcher at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), analyzed that "this sends a strong signal to China that Chinese AI companies will find it difficult to acquire top-performing U.S. chips like those from Nvidia."

Additionally, the establishment of a Board of Trade and a Board of Investment is also cited as a major agenda item. With U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent leading this summit, it is expected that efforts to redefine trade relations between the two countries will be strengthened. Former U.S. Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns pointed out, "For the first time since Henry Kissinger, neither the Secretary of State nor the National Security Advisor is leading the relationship with China."

Although President Trump stated that it would not be a key issue, in-depth discussions on the Iran war are also expected. With the war in Iran having continued for 10 weeks, pressure from the U.S. Congress is intensifying. On this day, during a House Appropriations Committee's defense subcommittee hearing on the fiscal year 2027 defense budget, the Department of Defense announced that the United States had spent $29 billion (about KRW 43 trillion) on the war with Iran over the past 10 weeks. Democratic lawmakers questioned why the cost had increased by $4 billion (KRW 6 trillion) in just two weeks.

In particular, China is experiencing difficulties in energy supply due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Before the Iran war, China sourced 11 percent of its crude oil imports from Iran, which is also its strategic partner. For this reason, some analysts believe the summit could serve as an opportunity to confirm China's resolve to seek an end to the conflict. However, Bloomberg reported that since President Trump had postponed his visit to China once because of the war but still failed to end it, the United States' bargaining power may have weakened.

China's Top Priority Agenda Is 'Taiwan'... U.S. Position Remains Unchanged

AFP Yonhap News

It is expected that China will demand a shift in the U.S. stance on Taiwan. In December of last year, the United States approved an arms sale to Taiwan worth $11 billion—the largest in history—which China strongly protested. Zhu Feng, Dean of the School of International Studies at Nanjing University, explained, "China will pressure not only over the arms sales but also for a policy shift from President Trump on Taiwan, as this issue is China's most sensitive and core interest."

However, the possibility that the U.S. will adjust its stance on Taiwan is low. The New York Times (NYT), citing White House officials, reported that there will be no significant changes in Taiwan policy.

Meanwhile, President Trump's private plane for this summit includes Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Jamison Greer, and White House Deputy Chief of Staff James Blair. Through this trip, President Trump will meet President Xi for the first time in six months since the summit held in Busan last October. It is the first time in about nine years since November 8-10, 2017, during the first Trump administration, that the two leaders are meeting in Beijing.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.