WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is preparing for a high-stakes summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing later this month, the White House said on Monday.
The meeting, expected in late May, will be the first face-to-face encounter between the two leaders since Trump returned to office. U.S. officials described the agenda as covering trade imbalances, tariffs, technology restrictions and regional security issues including the South China Sea and Taiwan.
White House officials said Trump will travel to Beijing for the bilateral talks, with a small delegation including senior economic and national security advisers. Preparatory discussions between U.S. and Chinese diplomats have been underway for several weeks in both capitals, according to officials familiar with the planning.
“This summit represents an important opportunity to address longstanding issues in the U.S.-China relationship,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a briefing on Monday. “President Trump is determined to secure fair deals for American workers and protect U.S. interests.”
The summit comes amid heightened economic tensions. The U.S. maintains significant tariffs on Chinese goods imposed during Trump’s first term and expanded in recent months. China has responded with its own countermeasures. Bilateral trade reached substantial volumes in 2025, but both sides have expressed frustration over market access and intellectual property concerns.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian confirmed that preparations for the leaders’ meeting were progressing and said Beijing hoped the summit would produce “mutually beneficial outcomes.”
U.S. officials have downplayed expectations for major breakthroughs, saying the goal is to establish a framework for ongoing negotiations. Topics expected to feature prominently include reducing the U.S. trade deficit with China, cooperation on fentanyl precursor chemicals, and managing military activities in the Indo-Pacific region.
The trip will mark Trump’s first visit to China during his second term. Previous summits between the two leaders have alternated between the U.S. and China, with the last in-person meeting occurring in 2019.
As of Monday, the White House had not released a full schedule or confirmed the exact dates of the visit, citing ongoing logistical and security coordination. Chinese state media reported that local authorities in Beijing were making preparations to host the U.S. delegation.
Both governments continue preparatory talks at the working level, officials said, with the summit aimed at stabilizing relations between the world’s two largest economies.
