Is Trump’s visit to Beijing for the sake of the world or for the sake of the United States?

US President Donald Trump’s visit to Beijing to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping, originally scheduled for 31 March to 2 April 2026, has been rescheduled for 14 and 15 May due to the ongoing conflict between the US and Israel and Iran.

Since Trump took office in 2025, the tit-for-tat tariff war between the US and China has pushed tariffs to levels approaching a trade embargo, and has spread to export controls and threats of visa refusals. Although intervention at the leadership level briefly stabilised the situation, the repeated escalations in April and October highlighted the fragility of US-China relations.

Since last October, the two sides have maintained the current truce and have both been striving to advance their relationship, leading to the hastily arranged state visit by Trump to China.

Both nations hold the economic chokepoints of the other. For the US, these chokepoints include semiconductors and related manufacturing equipment, software, high-performance specialty chemicals, aircraft components, other advanced technologies, and global financial infrastructure; for China, they include critical minerals, active pharmaceutical ingredients, and inputs spanning numerous supply chains. Both countries are striving to reduce these vulnerabilities through various decoupling and reshoring initiatives, but for the time being, each side remains capable of inflicting significant damage on the other.

Although the US has temporarily lifted sanctions on chip exports to China and suspended tariffs, China has yet to import a single chip from the US. Clearly, Trump has underestimated Beijing’s resolve and confidence. Beijing, however, has turned these multiple restrictions into an opportunity to become self-sufficient.

Drawing on in-depth analyses by anonymous officials regarding the meeting between the heads of state of the US and China, the shift from tariff confrontation to the signing of agreements has not only created a platform for political dialogue but is also quietly reshaping the global landscape.

Whether this leads to peace or continued confrontation remains to be seen. Tengritimes is continuing to follow this story closely, so please stay tuned!

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