3 Days of the Trump-Xi Summit: Temporary Agreements and Deferred Issues

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After three days of official ceremonies, meetings, and discussions, Chinese President Xi Jinping concluded his visit to the United States with specific economic agreements and a temporary easing of the trade war, while agreeing with U.S. President Donald Trump to hold further meetings before the end of the year to continue discussing the outstanding issues between the two countries.

Despite Trump's assertion that his meeting with Xi was "extremely productive," the announced results show that both sides focused more on managing disagreements and containing escalation.

Sensitive issues remained unresolved, including technology, Taiwan, rare earth metals, and Chinese support for Iran.

The most significant outcome of the summit was the extension of the trade truce, which was supposed to end in November, to continue until January 10, granting both sides additional time to implement the agreements reached and continue negotiations instead of returning to tariff escalation.

The agreements also included mutual tariff reductions on products worth $30 billion from each side, along with increased Chinese purchases of U.S. agricultural products and a one-year suspension of Chinese restrictions on rare earth metals.

U.S. Trade Representative Jameson Greer spoke about a list of goods that could be traded under preferential terms and exempting other products from future trade disputes, according to "AFP."

At the heart of the truce stood the issue of rare earth metals, which represent one of Beijing's most important economic leverage points against Washington, as multiple U.S. industries rely on these materials and their derivatives, while China holds a dominant position in mining and processing.

Both sides limited themselves to extending the suspension of Chinese export restrictions, while Washington kept the issue under close scrutiny. U.S. Trade Representative Jameson stated that Washington views the extension of the truce as a "compliance period," while Mary Lovely from the Peterson Institute for International Economics noted that the short extension was the preferred option for Americans due to concerns about supplies of rare earth magnets and officials' desire to monitor Beijing's compliance with the agreement, according to "AFP."

Meanwhile, former U.S. official Daniel Kritenbrink believed that Beijing is doing the bare minimum required to maintain the agreement, warning that this situation is "unsustainable in the long term."

In return, Washington received commitments regarding the Chinese agricultural market, particularly soybeans and other U.S. agricultural products, in a move targeting one of the sectors most affected by the trade war.

The energy sector also emerged in the economic agreements, with Chinese commitments to increase purchases of U.S. coal, while the Trump administration seeks to convert the trade truce into larger flows of U.S. goods instead of merely reducing tariffs. These arrangements are part of a broader attempt to reorganize bilateral trade based on what Washington describes as reciprocity.

In technology, both sides agreed to establish a bilateral dialogue on "superintelligence" to exchange views on the risks and benefits associated with technology, along with a communication channel to address incidents related to artificial intelligence.

However, this understanding does not rise to an agreement on technological competition itself; Washington and Beijing are still competing to develop artificial intelligence systems and advanced computing capabilities, while their visions differ on how to regulate this technology. During Xi's reception at the White House, the Chinese president emphasized the need to keep artificial intelligence "under human control," while Trump focused on developing technology and accelerating its capabilities, reflecting the ongoing differences in priorities between the two countries, according to "Yonhap News Agency."

On another note, both sides pledged to establish a communication channel regarding artificial intelligence incidents, representing a practical step to mitigate risks, but it does not mean creating an international framework to regulate technology, while analysts believe that U.S.-Chinese competition in this field will not slow down as a result of the summit.

The biggest knot in technological competition, which is advanced chips and U.S. export controls, did not witness any announced breakthrough.

Washington has made restrictions on China's access to advanced technologies a core part of its policy toward Beijing, while China views these measures as an attempt to limit its technological development. Even before the summit, this issue was separate from the trade agreements discussed by U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Pruitt and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, and no resolution to end mutual restrictions appeared in the announced outcomes, according to "Reuters."

In the military file, Washington and Beijing agreed to sign a memorandum of understanding between their militaries aimed at enhancing communication mechanisms and avoiding crises, in a step aimed at reducing the risks of miscalculation amid the increasing military competition between the two powers. Xinhua reported that the memorandum will establish a framework to enhance military communication and crisis prevention mechanisms, while Xi Jinping called for maintaining regular dialogue between the two militaries and improving communication channels.

This understanding came at a time when security disagreements between the two countries remain, particularly regarding Taiwan and U.S. military presence in the Indo-Pacific region, making the memorandum on communication and crisis management a measure to contain escalation risks, without meaning a resolution of these broader disagreements.

Taiwan remained one of the most sensitive issues outside any announced agreement between Trump and Xi.

Beijing maintains its position that Taiwan is part of China and rejects its independence, while Washington maintains its unofficial relations with the island and continues its defense support policy. During the summit, Xi emphasized the need for the United States to adhere to its position on Taiwan, but no new understanding was announced that changes the essence of U.S. or Chinese policy toward the island.

Thus, the issue, along with security and defense in the Indo-Pacific region, remained among the files that were politically addressed without a substantial breakthrough.

Trump and Xi also discussed the U.S. war on Iran and agreed on the necessity for Tehran to fulfill its commitment not to develop nuclear weapons, along with rejecting the imposition of any transit fees on international waterways, in a position directly related to the navigation crisis in the region and the disruption of shipping through strategic corridors.

In contrast, the talks did not lead to a comprehensive resolution regarding China's role in the war, although Trump raised the issue of Beijing's support for Tehran during the meeting. According to "Reuters," the U.S. president warned Xi against providing support to Iran, while the U.S. ambassador to China stated that Trump received assurances that Beijing would not provide such support.

Xi, for his part, called on Washington and Tehran to return to the path of dialogue and negotiation, emphasizing that China supports a return to the memorandum of understanding signed in Islamabad and ultimately reaching a comprehensive agreement on the nuclear file and other issues. According to Xinhua, the Chinese president stressed during his talks with Trump the necessity of diplomatic solutions and de-escalation.

Beyond the specific agreements, Trump and Xi agreed to continue dialogue and manage the relationship more stably, with Trump mentioning two more meetings during the year, indicating that the summit was not designed to resolve disagreements as much as it was an attempt to prevent them from turning back into open confrontation.

However, Daniel Russell from the Asia Society Policy Institute believed that the two countries are still "stuck in intense competition" encompassing trade, technology, Taiwan, defense, rare earth metals, and industrial policy, while former U.S. official Daniel Kritenbrink stated that stability in the relationship until the end of the year does not mean that the truce is sustainable in the long term without additional tangible results, according to "AFP."

Thus, Xi's visit to Washington concluded with a network of temporary understandings rather than a major deal that redraws the relationship: a trade truce that received additional time, arrangements regarding certain goods, metals, and agriculture, and a new dialogue channel on artificial intelligence.

In contrast, Taiwan, chips, technological competition, defense, and China's role regarding Iran remain among the files awaiting further negotiation rounds.