Many ceremonies, few agreements. 6 takeaways from the US-China summit
The summit was rich in symbolic gestures but shallow in substance: no major breakthrough was achieved, but the two sides mentioned artificial intelligence as an area of cooperation.
Many ceremonies, few agreements. 6 conclusions from the US-China summit
Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to the US on September 23–25 was the third face-to-face meeting between the two leaders in a year. Xi came to Washington for the first time since 2015. The summit was rich in symbolic gestures but shallow in substance: no major breakthrough was recorded, but the two sides mentioned artificial intelligence as an area of cooperation.
From the very first day of the visit, the White House tried to turn the summit into a grand spectacle. On September 23, US President Donald Trump, instead of welcoming the guest at the White House as usual, went to Andrews Air Force Base himself and met Xi at the steps of the plane.
The next day, an honor guard lined up in the Rose Garden of the White House: a B-2 bomber and F-22 fighters flew overhead. Trump said he had "never gotten along so well" with Xi, while Xi recalled Nixon's 1972 visit and spoke of a "friendship forged in blood and fire." On September 25, the leaders are scheduled to visit the National Archives.
The most frequently mentioned topic at the summit was artificial intelligence, but the parties' attitudes toward it differed significantly. Before the meeting, on September 20, delegations led by Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng and US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent held the first dialogue on artificial intelligence in New York. Bessent said he proposed a mechanism for notifying each other of AI incidents at the national security level, but Beijing did not officially confirm its agreement.
He emphasized that they "have the opportunity and responsibility to develop and manage AI for good," and that technology must "always remain under human control."
According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry's statement, Xi proposed in closed-door talks to establish a dialogue on AI risks and prevent its misuse. The Chinese statement said Trump also agreed that AI "concerns the future of humanity" and that dialogue on this matter should continue.