Date: September 23, 2026
Reporter: Emilly Jordan
WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump welcomed Chinese President Xi Jinping to Washington on Wednesday for a three-day state visit, opening a high-profile meeting between the leaders of the world's two largest economies as disagreements over trade, technology, Taiwan and Iran continue to strain relations.
Xi's arrival marked his first trip to the United States in nearly three years. Trump personally greeted the Chinese president and his wife at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, where the two couples shook hands and posed for photographs during a ceremonial welcome featuring a military band, ceremonial cannon fire and a B-1 bomber flying overhead.
The reception was an unusually elaborate display of ceremony. According to C-SPAN, it was the first time in 11 years that a U.S. president had welcomed a foreign leader at Joint Base Andrews. The previous occasion was when President Barack Obama welcomed Pope Francis in 2015.
The arrival also came with a significant development on trade. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Washington and Beijing had agreed to extend their existing trade truce until January 10. The agreement had been due to expire on November 10.
China's embassy in Washington did not immediately comment on the reported extension.
The trade truce follows a period of severe tension between Washington and Beijing, including a 2025 tariff conflict that saw the two countries impose tariffs reaching triple-digit levels on each other's goods. A limited extension could provide additional time for negotiations between the two governments.
Despite the trade agreement, major disagreements remain. Washington and Beijing continue to differ over rare-earth minerals, computer chips, technology controls, China's relationship with Iran and U.S. support for Taiwan.
People familiar with the plans said Xi was expected to raise Beijing's position on Taiwan during his discussions with Trump. Washington, however, would prefer to avoid allowing the Taiwan issue to dominate the meeting. Trump is also expected to maintain U.S. export controls despite Chinese objections.
Iran is another complicated issue for the summit. It remains unclear whether China will assist Washington in breaking the diplomatic stalemate surrounding the conflict with Tehran. China has maintained close economic and diplomatic ties with Iran, while the Trump administration has sought international pressure on Tehran.
The leaders are scheduled to hold talks on Thursday. Possible areas of agreement include reductions in tariffs affecting particular sectors, cooperation against drug trafficking and expanded military-to-military communication.
Trump is also expected to raise the cases of Americans and other people detained in China, according to people familiar with the plans. The two countries may additionally discuss artificial intelligence, an area in which Washington and Beijing are competing for technological leadership while also confronting concerns about the risks associated with increasingly powerful AI systems.
The differences between the two governments extend beyond the immediate negotiating issues. Analysts cited by Reuters said Trump and Xi enter the meeting with very different assessments of their countries' long-term positions.
Edgard Kagan, a former White House official now with the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said Trump believes the U.S. economy will grow stronger over time, while Xi is believed to view the United States as being in decline and China as having more time on its side.
The visit will also include extensive ceremonial events. A state dinner on Thursday is expected to bring together prominent technology executives, including Apple's Tim Cook, Nvidia's Jensen Huang and OpenAI's Sam Altman. The schedule also includes a White House military ceremony with aircraft flyovers and a visit to the National Archives, where the original Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution are housed.
Rather than ending the summit with a traditional joint press conference or statement, the two countries are expected to issue separate announcements emphasizing what each government wants its domestic audience to take from the meeting.
The highly choreographed nature of the visit is intended to project stability between Washington and Beijing despite their continuing disagreements. Xi's visit follows Trump's trip to China earlier this year and represents the second reciprocal meeting between the two leaders within six months. China's Foreign Ministry has described the visit as an opportunity to strengthen dialogue, manage differences and expand cooperation.
For Trump, the meeting comes at the end of a week of intensive diplomacy that included his participation in the United Nations General Assembly. The Reuters report also noted that the nearly seven-month war with Iran has contributed to higher U.S. energy prices, while Republicans face congressional elections in November.
Xi arrives in Washington with China's foreign trade performing strongly, although China continues to face weak household spending and a downturn in its property market. At the same time, extensive corruption and disciplinary investigations within China's military have raised questions about the readiness of the People's Liberation Army, according to Reuters.
Another meeting between Trump and Xi could take place later this year, potentially during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in China in November or the Group of 20 meetings in the United States in December.
For now, the Washington summit places trade at the center of renewed engagement between the two governments, while Taiwan, technology, Iran and broader strategic differences remain unresolved.