US President Donald Trump will not cooperate with China on artificial intelligence. The US has a big advantage and should not risk it, says Trump. "If you lead, you do not open yourselves to each other," quotes him Reuter.
Xi Jinping visits the US: Trump does not want to cooperate with China on AI +++ China's Panda Diplomacy is back
From AI to trade policy to the Iran war – many contentious issues are on the agenda during Xi Jinping's three-day state visit to the US. The latest in the live ticker.
There it is again, China's famous Panda Diplomacy: Xi Jinping announced in Washington that two pandas are to go to the Atlanta zoo. The placement of the animals has strong political symbolism. For decades, Beijing has used the popular bears as diplomatic door openers to win the favor of Western states and pursue economic rapprochement. The expiration of almost all loan agreements and the return of the pandas to China were recently seen as a symbol of the cooled relations between Beijing and the West.
Donald Trump says that he and Xi have a "really great friendship" since his first election as US President. While Trump spoke at the podium, according to American media, Xi sat to his left and Melania Trump to his right.
At the beginning of China's President Xi Jinping's state visit to the US, Donald Trump expressed his joy: "A great day with Chinese President Xi. Super-Intelligence (SI) will be a big topic of discussion, but I want to leave it as it is. That is also China's position. Our safety net is the Department of Justice!" he wrote on his Truth Social platform.
With the extension of the trade agreement between the US and China, the export of important minerals to the West is also still guaranteed. The People's Republic dominates the world market for critical raw materials, including rare earths, and in response to Trump's trade tariffs, it imposed export controls in April 2025.
The American Secretary of Finance Scott Bessent explained to the television station Fox News that the agreement is now valid until January 10th. However, he does not know if a more comprehensive agreement between the two countries can be reached. From the Chinese side, there has been no confirmation for the extension of the so-called Busan Agreement for the time being.
This is also good news for Europe. Several companies in Switzerland and Germany have been struggling with a shortage in the past year. The People's Republic is not only slowing down exports but also demands sensitive information from customers and products from exporters.
China and the United States should be partners and not rivals, says President Xi Jinping upon his arrival in Washington according to the Chinese state news agency Xinhua. Xi further explained that the US and China should promote stable relations with cooperation, moderate competition, overcoming differences, and the prospect of peace.
The disputes between the two superpowers are not just about tariffs. Beijing has criticized the US export controls on semiconductors and chips for the development of artificial intelligence. Washington, in turn, accuses China of deliberately withholding certain raw materials. Foreign companies currently require permits from the Chinese Ministry of Commerce to export rare earths.
The additional tariffs on the import of Chinese goods, which were suspended until November, will be postponed by another two months according to American Secretary of Finance Scott Bessent. Bessent said this to Fox News at the beginning of the Chinese President Xi's state visit.
"We have agreed to extend the so-called Busan Agreement today," says Bessent. In South Korea's Busan, American President Donald Trump and Chinese State and Party Chief Xi Jinping agreed to suspend high additional tariffs last October. If the agreement had expired, China would also have expanded export controls on rare earths, which affect companies in Europe since their introduction in April 2025.
The trade conflict between the two states escalated in April 2025 when the governments imposed more than 100 percent additional tariffs on each other. As Bessent has stated, the postponement from until November to until November 10th should apply.
Xi and his wife Peng Liyuan landed at the military airfield Andrews near the American capital Washington on Wednesday evening (local time). They are to be received there by US President Donald Trump and his wife Melania.
After a short red carpet walk, a military band plays the national anthems of both countries. During the American anthem, B-1 bombers fly over the guests of the ceremony – the noise is so deafening that Trump grimaces and turns to Xi with a remark. Afterwards, the heads of state leave in different cars from the runway.
On the occasion of the Chinese state leader's first trip to the US in almost three years, Trump personally welcomes Xi and his wife upon their arrival at the military airfield Andrews. Normally, American presidents receive foreign heads of state in the White House. The last time an American president welcomed a foreign head of state at an airfield was during the visit of Pope Francis in 2015.
The program includes a state banquet, to which according to Reuters, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, and Apple Executive Chairman Tim Cook are expected to attend. In addition, a military ceremony is planned in the White House.
The US is, according to the US Secretary of Finance, ready to extend the trade peace between the US and China, which expires on November 10th. The US is also ready to consider a trade agreement, said American Secretary of Finance Scott Bessent after a meeting with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in Washington.
The meeting served to prepare for the upcoming summit between the leaders of both countries. The expiring trade peace is one of the central topics that Chinese President Xi Jinping and American President Donald Trump will probably discuss at the White House on Thursday.