Donald Trump embarks this Tuesday (12) for China on a trip that brings the world’s two biggest powers face to face at a time of strong geopolitical pressure.
The president of the United States will have a meeting with Xi Jinping on Thursday (14), in Beijing, with an agenda dominated by strategic disputes, international security and technology.
The meeting takes place less than a year after the last face-to-face meeting between the two leaders, held in October 2025, when Washington and Beijing announced a pause in the trade war and opened space for economic negotiations.
This time, however, the international environment is more unstable. The war involving Iran changed the axis of conversations between Americans and Chinese and increased pressure on Beijing.
China remains one of the main buyers of Iranian oil and maintains close diplomatic relations with Tehran. The Trump administration is trying to convince Xi Jinping to use this influence to unlock nuclear negotiations and avoid a new military escalation in the Middle East.
The international security agenda also includes Russia. Members of the White House assess that Chinese dialogue could be important in unlocking negotiations related to the war in Ukraine and the ceasefire attempts sponsored by the United States.
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In addition to regional conflicts, Washington and Beijing arrive at the meeting under pressure from a new cycle of military tension. In recent months, Trump has accused China of carrying out underground nuclear tests secretly and without international transparency.
The American administration began to defend a possible trilateral agreement between the United States, Russia and China to limit nuclear expansion. The Chinese government, however, has already indicated that it does not consider the issue a priority at this time.
Another focus of friction will be Taiwan. The United States increased the supply of military equipment to the island, while China intensified exercises and military movements in the region.
On Monday (11), Trump confirmed that he intends to discuss directly with Xi the sending of American weapons to Taiwan. The president stated that the Chinese leader would like to stop this military support, but indicated that Washington does not intend to abandon the strategic partnership with the island.
Technology also gained central space in negotiations between the two countries. Trump’s advisers have shown growing concern about the advancement of Chinese artificial intelligence and suspicions of technological espionage.
In April, American authorities accused groups linked to China of trying to access US artificial intelligence systems using fake accounts and mechanisms to circumvent security barriers.
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The episode increased pressure within the American government to restrict exports of advanced chips and expand controls on Chinese technology companies.
In the economic area, the meeting will also serve to discuss the future of the trade truce signed last year. The agreement reduced tariffs between the two countries and guaranteed the continued supply of rare Chinese minerals to American industry.
Diplomats from both sides are now working on creating permanent forums to facilitate investment and trade negotiations, in addition to discussing a possible extension of the treaty that halted the tariff war between Washington and Beijing.
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