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With smiles, firm handshakes and warm gestures, Chinese President Xi Jinping and his US counterpart Donald Trump set a cordial, friendly tone before their historic summit. More than an hour and a half later, they emerged from their first face-to-face encounter in six years with the same genial manner. In front of reporters, ahead of the meeting in Busan, South Korea, a grinning Trump predicted the summit would be “very successful”. “He’s a tough negotiator – that’s not good,” he said, before giving the Chinese leader a friendly pat on the back. Trump referred to Xi as his “friend”, praising him as a “very distinguished and respected president” and “a great leader of a great country”. After they sat down face-to-face, Trump said he was optimistic about their future ties: “I expect we’ll have a fantastic relationship for a long period of time.” Xi reciprocated the sentiment in his opening remarks, saying he felt a “warm” sense upon seeing Trump again. After the summit concluded 100 minutes later, Trump and Xi walked out together at Gimhae Air Base and smiled before sharing a final handshake. Trump whispered something to Xi before walking the Chinese leader to his car. The two leaders had already finalised a series of agreements, ranging from the US trimming its fentanyl-related tariffs on China from 20 per cent to 10 per cent with immediate effect to postponing its Section 301 investigation into Chinese shipbuilding. Meanwhile, China will suspend a set of new rare earth export controls it announced this month for one year, as well as its corresponding measures against the US shipbuilding investigation. Trump told reporters on the flight back to the United States that he would visit China in April. Both leaders were accompanied by several high-level officials. On the Chinese side was Foreign Minister Wang Yi, his deputy Ma Zhaoxu, Commerce Minister Wang Wentao, Vice-Premier He Lifeng, Xi’s chief of staff Cai Qi, and National Development and Reform Commission chairman Zheng Shanjie. On the American side was US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, chief of staff Susie Wiles, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and David Perdue, the US ambassador to China. Xi arrived in Busan on Thursday morning for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit to be held in Gyeongju. Trump skipped the gathering after attending some events with business leaders on Wednesday. The meeting venue – a grey building with a light blue rooftop near Gimhae International Airport – is heavily secured. Barbed wire fences make the site inaccessible to the public and most media, with heightened security serving as the only visible sign of the leaders’ presence. Seoul struck a balance for the reception ceremony for the two leaders in Busan, with both arrivals treated as a state visit. South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun greeted them separately at the airport. A red carpet was rolled out for Xi’s arrival, with honour guards lining up and a 21-gun salute. Xi arrived at the summit venue in a Chinese-made Hongqi vehicle. Trump had arrived in South Korea a day earlier. He also received a 21-gun salute, while a South Korean military band performed “Y.M.C.A.”, a 1970s hit song that became a staple at Trump’s campaign rallies.
