For Chinese leader Xi Jinping, this landmark meeting with Donald Trump is a moment to realize a long-sought goal: showcasing China’s standing as an equal to the United States on the global stage.
While President Trump’s trade war challenged China’s growth, it inadvertently gave Beijing a bright spotlight to flex its economic strength.
- Forcing a Truce: When the U.S. unleashed global tariffs, China fought back with its own measures. The recent threat to expand export controls on critical rare earth minerals—a move that rattled Washington—demonstrated China’s significant leverage and ultimately forced both superpowers to the negotiating table for a truce.
- The New Reality: The meeting cements a new reality in U.S.-China relations: China will negotiate, but it won’t be cowed. Analysts suggest the crisis has forced the U.S. to recognize that it is “not the dominant power anymore.”
- Calm and Self-Sufficient: Beijing projects an image of being “very calm” in the face of conflict. Simultaneously, it is accelerating its internal push for technological and industrial self-sufficiency through its upcoming five-year plan, strategically insulating itself from future U.S. shocks.
- A Power Play: Xi’s top priorities are clear: securing a reduction of U.S. tariffs and a rollback of high-tech export controls. China used its rare earths advantage to “coerce” the U.S. into a more limited set of sanctions. For Beijing, the meeting is a success if Trump treats Xi with the “respect and warmth” he has previously professed, validating China’s position as a mutual global peer.
In short, by enduring the pressure and fighting back, China has elevated its status in the eyes of the world, transforming a trade war into a diplomatic opportunity.
Would you like me to focus on a specific aspect of this relationship, like the rare earth minerals issue or future technology competition?
