Avoiding War

Xi Jinping told Donald Trump at a White House summit Thursday that regular dialogue and military crisis communication could keep China and the US from sliding into war. The Chinese president invoked the "Thucydides trap," the theory that a rising power and an established one tend toward conflict. It "can be overcome," Xi said, if both militaries keep talking, the Guardian reported. He also proposed inviting 100,000 young Americans to China on student exchanges, according to the Guardian.

Chips are the center of this fight. The US is trying to cut off China's supply of AI chips, and China cut American factories off from rare-earth elements last year, CBS News reported. Iran and Russia loom over the talks too, with Washington and Beijing watching each other over China's ties to both countries.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Wednesday the two countries agreed to extend their tariff truce, first struck in Busan, to Jan. 10. It was set to expire Nov. 10. "There are some deliverables that have not been perfect on the Chinese side," Bessent told Fox News, according to ABC News.

Wednesday night, Trump met Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews, a rare move for a sitting president. A formal ceremony followed Thursday on the South Lawn. Nearly 500 troops turned out, CBS News reported, with a flyover of a B-2 bomber and four F-22s. AI safety, Taiwan, trade, the war in Iran and critical minerals filled out the agenda, ABC News reported.

Trump called his bond with Xi "a truly great friendship" and pointed to new market access for American farmers. Xi told him he was ready "to steer the giant ship of the China-US relationship on a steady course towards the future."

Not everyone expects much to come of it. James Lewis of the Center for European Policy Analysis isn't holding his breath. "I'm not anticipating very much. I don't think anyone is," he told CBS News. His verdict came in three words. "Largely for show."

A state dinner followed Thursday night in the East Room. Tech executives packed the guest list, among them Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, Tim Cook and Nvidia's Jensen Huang, ABC News reported. The two leaders were due to meet again Friday for tea before their delegations depart.