Trump Arrives In Beijing With Tech Ceos For First China Visit In Nine Years

US President Donald Trump touched down in Beijing on Wednesday evening for a two-day state visit, his first trip to China since 2017 and the first by any sitting US president in nearly nine years.

Three hundred Chinese children dressed in blue and white uniforms waved American and Chinese flags as Trump descended the steps of Air Force One, and he was greeted by Chinese Vice President Han Zheng, widely seen as Xi's envoy for diplomatic events. Executive Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu was also on the tarmac. Bilateral meetings with President Xi Jinping are scheduled to begin Thursday and conclude Friday, with the itinerary including a welcome ceremony, two bilateral meetings, a state banquet, a tour of the Temple of Heaven, and a working tea.

A Delegation of Corporate Heavyweights

Among those joining Trump are Apple CEO Tim Cook, Tesla CEO Elon Musk, and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, who joined the trip at the last minute on a stopover in Alaska. Huang's addition thrust AI and technology further into the spotlight ahead of the high-stakes summit. The delegation also includes Wall Street executives Larry Fink of BlackRock, David Solomon of Goldman Sachs, and Jane Fraser of Citigroup, as well as Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth are also on the trip.

For many of these executives, China is both a vital manufacturing hub and a huge consumer market they want to keep tapping, even as trade tensions between the world's two largest economies swirl. Trump signaled his commercial priorities before departure, posting on Truth Social that his "very first request" to Xi would be to "open up" China so that the accompanying US executives "can work their magic."

A Packed and High-Stakes Agenda

The high-stakes talks are expected to cover tariffs, rare earths, artificial intelligence, the Iran war, and Taiwan. There are also widespread expectations that China will announce plans to purchase additional soybeans and Boeing aircraft, and there is talk of a process to formalize the trade truce between the two nations.

On the Iran conflict, Trump offered a softer tone before departure. Speaking to reporters, Trump said he does not need China's assistance in ending the war on Iran and declared that the US will win "one way or the other." However, senior US officials have been pressing Beijing to leverage its influence over Tehran, with Secretary of State Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent publicly calling on China to use its ties with Iran to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

The Council on Foreign Relations described the meeting as an effort to stabilize US-China relations rather than resolve long-standing disputes. With trade, technology dominance, Taiwan, and a live regional conflict all on the table, the outcome of the Beijing summit is being closely watched by governments and markets alike.

Sources:
CNBC: Trump in China: President lands in Beijing with Tesla, Nvidia CEOs
CNN: Trump arrives in China for summit with Xi Jinping
Al Jazeera: Trump says he does not need Xi's help on Iran war as he heads to China