Trump Set to Meet With Xi in Beijing   05/13 06:07

   U.S. President Donald Trump is set to arrive in Beijing on Wednesday for his 
highly anticipated summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping at a restless moment 
for a world worried about war, trade and artificial intelligence.

   BEIJING (AP) -- U.S. President Donald Trump is set to arrive in Beijing on 
Wednesday for his highly anticipated summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping at a 
restless moment for a world worried about war, trade and artificial 
intelligence.

   "We're the two superpowers," Trump told reporters as he departed the White 
House on Tuesday. "We're the strongest nation on Earth in terms of military. 
China's considered second."

   While Trump likes to project a sense of strength, the visit occurs at a 
delicate moment for his presidency as his popularity at home has been weighed 
down by the U.S. and Israel's war with Iran and rising inflation as a 
consequence of that conflict. The Republican president is seeking a win by 
signing deals with China to buy more American soybeans, beef and aircraft, 
saying he'll be talking with Xi about trade "more than anything else."

   The Trump administration hopes to begin the process of establishing a Board 
of Trade with China to address differences between the countries. The board 
could help prevent the trade war ignited last year after Trump's tariff hikes, 
an action China countered through its control of rare earth minerals. That led 
to a one-year truce last October.

   But Trump visits Beijing when Iran continues to dominate his domestic 
agenda. The war has led to the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, 
stranding oil and natural gas tankers and causing energy prices to spike to 
levels that could sabotage global economic growth. The U.S. president declared 
that Xi didn't need to assist in resolving the conflict, even though Iran's 
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was in Beijing last week.

   "We have a lot of things to discuss. I wouldn't say Iran is one of them, to 
be honest with you, because we have Iran very much under control," Trump told 
reporters Tuesday.

   Taiwan high on the agenda

   The status of Taiwan also appears to be a major topic as China is displeased 
with U.S. plans to sell weapons to the self-governing island that the Chinese 
government claims as part of its own territory.

   Trump told reporters Monday that he would be discussing with Xi an $11 
billion weapons package for Taiwan that the U.S. administration authorized in 
December but has not yet begun fulfilling. The arms package is the largest ever 
approved for Taiwan.

   But the U.S. leader has demonstrated greater ambivalence toward Taiwan, an 
approach that's raising questions about whether Trump could be open to dialing 
back support for the island democracy.

   At the same time, Taiwan -- as the world's leading chipmaker -- has become 
essential for the development of AI, with the U.S. importing more goods so far 
this year from Taiwan than China. Trump has sought to use Biden-era programs 
and his own deals to bring more chipmaking to America.

   The Chinese Communist Party's news outlet, People's Daily, published a 
strongly worded editorial on Tuesday underscoring that Taiwan is "the first red 
line that cannot be crossed in China-U.S. relations" and is "the biggest point 
of risk" between the two nations.

   Trump says relationship with Xi is on solid footing

   Trump was already portraying the trip as a success before he left White 
House grounds. He openly mused about Xi's planned reciprocal visit to the U.S., 
lamenting that the ballroom under construction would not be completed in time 
to properly fete the Chinese leader.

   "We're going to have a great relationship for many, many decades to come," 
Trump said of the U.S. and China. "As you know, President Xi will be coming 
here toward the end of the year. So that would be exciting. I only wish we had 
the ballroom finished."

   Trump said he had spoken with the Chinese leader and the meeting would be 
"positive" as he embarked on Air Force One with a coterie of aides, family 
members and business world titans, including Nvidia's Jensen Huang and Tesla 
and SpaceX's Elon Musk.

   Trump, as he flew to Beijing, posted on social media that his "first 
request" to Xi during the visit will be to ask the Chinese leader to bolster 
the presence of U.S. firms in China.

   "I will be asking President Xi, a Leader of extraordinary distinction, to 
'open up' China so that these brilliant people can work their magic, and help 
bring the People's Republic to an even higher level!" wrote Trump, who is 
expected to receive a formal ceremonial greeting when he arrives in the Chinese 
capital on Wednesday evening.

   Despite Trump's outward confidence, China appears to be entering the meeting 
from "a much stronger place," said Scott Kennedy, a senior adviser on Chinese 
business and economics at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a 
Washington think tank.

   China would like to reduce tech restrictions on accessing computer chips and 
find ways to reduce tariffs, among other goals.

   "But even if they don't get much on any of those things, as long as there's 
not a blow-up in the meeting and President Trump doesn't go away and look to 
re-escalate, China basically comes out stronger," Kennedy said.

   U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng met 
on Wednesday to discuss economic and trade issues at Incheon International 
Airport, just west of the South Korean capital Seoul, according to the Chinese 
state run Xinhua News Agency.

   Trump wants 3-way nuclear arms deal

   Trump also intends to raise the idea of the U.S., China and Russia signing a 
pact that would set limits on the nuclear weapons each nation keeps in its 
arsenal, according to a senior Trump administration official who briefed 
reporters ahead of the trip. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity 
under ground rules set by the White House.

   China has previously been cool to entering such a pact. Beijing's arsenal, 
according to Pentagon estimates, exceeds more than 600 operational nuclear 
warheads and is far from parity with the U.S. and Russia, which each are 
estimated to have more than 5,000 nuclear warheads.

   The last nuclear arms pact, known as the New START treaty, between Russia 
and the United States expired in February, removing any caps on the two largest 
atomic arsenals for the first time in more than a half-century. As the treaty 
was set to expire, Trump rejected a call by Russia to extend the two-country 
deal for another year and called for "a new, improved, and modernized" deal 
that includes China.

   The Pentagon estimates China has more than 600 operational nuclear warheads 
and will have over 1,000 by 2030.