Taiwan Tensions Take Centre Stage as Xi Meets Trump in Beijing

Chinese President Xi Jinping cautioned US President Donald Trump that Taiwan could become a flashpoint for conflict between their countries during talks in Beijing on Thursday.

Opening a major US-China summit, Xi warned that any “missteps” over Taiwan could severely damage relations between the world’s two largest powers.

“The Taiwan question is the most important issue in China-US relations,” Xi said during the talks.

“If mishandled, the two nations could collide or even come into conflict, pushing the entire China-US relationship into a highly perilous situation,” he added.

Trump arrived in Beijing in a more upbeat mood, describing Xi as a “great leader” and “friend”, while predicting “a fantastic future together” for both nations.

Despite the cordial public remarks, tensions over trade, security and global influence continue to strain relations between Washington and Beijing.

Trump’s visit is the first by an American president to China in nearly 10 years.

Xi welcomed the US leader with a lavish ceremony at the Great Hall of the People featuring military honours, a 21-gun salute and children waving and chanting greetings.

Trump praised the occasion, saying US-China ties would become “better than ever before”.

Xi, meanwhile, warned against rivalry between rising and established powers, invoking the ancient concept of the “Thucydides Trap”.

“Can China and the United States transcend the so-called ‘Thucydides Trap’ and forge a new paradigm for major-power relations?” Xi asked.

“Cooperation benefits both sides, while confrontation harms both,” he added.

Taiwan remains one of the most sensitive issues between both nations. China claims the democratic island as its own territory and has refused to rule out the use of force to take control of it.

Although Washington officially recognises Beijing, American law requires the US government to help Taiwan defend itself.

Trump said earlier this week he planned to raise the issue of US weapons sales to Taiwan during his meeting with Xi, breaking from Washington’s traditional stance of avoiding consultations with China on such sales.

Following Xi’s comments, Taiwan described China as the “sole risk” to peace in the region and said the United States had continued to demonstrate firm support for Taipei.

Analysts noted that Xi’s direct warning reflected Beijing’s push for compromises from Washington on Taiwan.

The summit also covered the ongoing Iran conflict, trade relations, Ukraine and North Korea.

The White House said both leaders agreed that the Strait of Hormuz should remain open to protect global energy flows, while Xi opposed any militarisation of the strategic route.

Business leaders travelling with Trump, including Jensen Huang and Elon Musk, joined parts of the discussions.

Xi told the executives that China would continue opening its economy to the outside world.

After the talks, Trump and Xi visited the historic Temple of Heaven ahead of an official state banquet later in the evening.

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