Trump went to China groveling at their feet; his bottom line was getting China to end the blockage of the Strait of Hormuz. That put Trump in a weakened position.
President Donald Trump’s ambitions for his summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping have shrunk from ‘grand bargain’ to a plea for help in reopening the Strait of Hormuz and a push for small trade deals.PoliticoBy Phelim Kine, Megan Messerly and Ari Hawkins05/13/2026President Donald Trump is arriving in Beijing in a role that he isn’t used to — a supplicant asking for favors.The White House has said the meeting between Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Thursday and Friday will focus on trade, fentanyl and the war in Iran — all areas where the Trump administration has had little luck getting deals or concessions from China.That means Trump will be hard-pressed to deliver the big outcomes he has promised for weeks. Trump pitched the meeting as “a Monumental Event” in March and announced on Truth Social last month that he expects nothing less than a “big fat hug” from Xi.
President Donald Trump is arrived in Beijing in a role that he isn’t used to: a supplicant asking for favors.
The White House has said the meeting between Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Thursday and Friday will focus on trade, fentanyl and the war in Iran — all areas where the Trump administration has had little luck getting deals or concessions from China.That means Trump will be hard-pressed to deliver the big outcomes he has promised for weeks. Trump pitched the meeting as “a Monumental Event” in March and announced on Truth Social last month that he expects nothing less than a “big fat hug” from Xi.
The meeting got off on the wrong foot with a snub. Chronology writes:
President Donald Trump arrived in Beijing for one of the most important diplomatic meetings of his presidency — but within minutes, critics were already calling the visit a humiliation.
The reason?
Chinese President Xi Jinping did not personally greet Trump at the airport.Instead of being welcomed by Xi himself, Trump stepped off Air Force One to meet lower-ranking Chinese officials, including Vice President Han Zheng and diplomats from both governments.
And online, the reaction exploded instantly.
There are also rumors that the Xi chair was higher than Trump's and that the long stairway was designed to get Trump huffing and puffing so that Xi had to step in to steady him
Political commentators immediately framed the airport moment as a symbolic power play by Beijing. Trump, in round one, was a supplicant to Xi.
The British media outlet Reuters also saw it as a win for China.
By Trevor HunnicuttMay 15, 2026Summary
- Trump's trip leaves questions on China-Iran ties
- Limited concrete results confirmed by Beijing
- White House tight-lipped on Taiwan
U.S. President Donald Trump's two-day state visit to Beijing featured wide-ranging talks on Taiwan, Iran and trade with Chinese President Xi Jinping but yielded few concrete outcomes on the issues dividing the world's two largest economies.Here are some takeaways from Trump's trip to China, the first by a U.S. president since 2017.NO BREAKTHROUGH ON IRANTrump downplayed the need for China's help with Iran ahead of the trip, even as his aides said Beijing - a major buyer of Iranian oil - could play an influential role in brokering a path to ending a conflict that has created the biggest crisis of Trump's presidency.[…]MORE PAGEANTRY THAN POLICYTrump touted deals with Xi on Chinese purchases of farm goods, opens new tab, beef and Boeing aircraft, but the details were thin.He departed Beijing without extending a trade truce due to expire later this year. Markets were disappointed that a deal reported by Trump for China to buy 200 Boeing jets wasn't bigger, and traders said U.S. soybean futures fell to their lowest level in more than two weeks on Friday after the summit failed to produce specific deals for American farm goods.[…]STRATEGIC SILENCE ON TAIWANWhen Trump emerged from his first round of talks with Xi on Thursday, reporters wanted to know one thing. What did they discuss on Taiwan?Standing at the ancient Chinese Temple of Heaven, opens new tab alongside Xi, a president known for his loquaciousness opted for an almost spiritual silence. Trump said nothing.By that point, China had already released an extended summary of Xi’s own comments on Taiwan in the private meeting with Trump. The Chinese leader warned that mishandling the countries' disagreements over Taiwan, the democratically governed island claimed by Beijing, could push China-U.S. relations to a "dangerous place."
As Xi and Trump walked through the Zhongnanhai gardens, Trump asked for some rose seeds, and Xi promised to send them for the White House Rose Garden. However, because the Rose Garden had been paved over by Trump, the offer was widely seen as a subtle dig against Donald “The Art of the Deal” Trump.
Trump left with nothing! All that his prostrating himself got him was nothing. China gave Trump the equivalent of some beads and trinkets. And what about the Strait of Hormuz? Well, China escorted tankers through the gulf... Chinese warships with the red star, escorting tankers through the gulf. That said it all!
Even the King of England got in a few digs at Trump when the King visited the White House; Trump has become the laughingstock of the world.
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