Following the trip, Trump said he had not yet made a determination on whether a major U.S. sale of arms to Taiwan can move forward. Speaking to reporters as he flew back on Air Force One, Trump said he’d not decided on the sale, but he added, “I will make a determination.”
Trump’s Republican administration has authorized the sale but it has yet to move forward. China opposes the deal and has suggested that Washington’s relationship with the self-governing island is the key factor in China-U.S. relations.
Trump said Xi told him that he was opposed to Taiwan’s independence. “I heard him out,” Trump said. “I didn’t make a comment.”
Trump also said he raised a potential three-way nuclear deal among the U.S., Russia and China. He wants each of the three countries to sign a pact that would cap the number of nuclear warheads in its arsenal. China has previously been cool to entering such a pact.
Beijing’s arsenal, according to Pentagon estimates, exceeds more than 600 operational nuclear warheads and is far from parity with the U.S. and Russia, which each are estimated to have more than 5,000 nuclear warheads. But Trump suggested Xi was receptive to the idea.
“I got a very a positive response,” Trump said. “This is the beginning.”
The last nuclear arms pact, known as the New START treaty, between Russia and the United States expired in February, removing any caps on the two largest atomic arsenals for the first time in more than a half-century. As the treaty was set to expire, Trump rejected a call by Russia to extend the two-country deal for another year and called for " a new, improved, and modernized" deal that includes China.
The Pentagon estimates China will have more than 1,000 operational nuclear warheads by 2030.
Xi welcomed Trump at his official residence, Zhongnanhai, on Friday for their final engagement of the summit before the U.S. leader’s return to Washington. The leaders took a short walk through the grounds that feature ancient trees and Chinese roses, and they strolled through a covered passageway with green columns and archways painted with birds and traditional Chinese mountain scenes.
Over tea and lunch, Trump and Xi — with top aides and translators in tow — huddled for nearly three hours of talks before the U.S. leader completed his three-day visit to China.
“It’s been really a great couple of days,” Trump told reporters.
Xi, for his part, called it a “milestone” visit. “We have established a new bilateral relationship, or rather a constructive, strategic, stable relationship,” he said.
