Trump heads to China for high-stakes summit with Xi

BEIJING — U.S. President Donald Trump departed for Beijing on Tuesday (Washington time) for a high-stakes summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping, amid hopes that the long-awaited meeting will help ease tensions in their deepening strategic rivalry and foster cooperation on complex issues, such as Iran. Trump is scheduled to land in Beijing on Wednesday evening (local time) for a three-day visit, marking his first trip to China since November 2017. This trip comes despite an impasse in U.S.-Iran talks aimed at ending the war and reopening the crucial Strait of Hormuz. On Thursday morning, Trump and Xi are set to hold a meeting, which would be the first of four possible bilateral talks this year, including meetings on the margins of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Shenzhen, China, in November and the Group of 20 gathering in Florida in December. Before departing, Trump told reporters that he will discuss "a lot of different things" with Xi. "I would say more than anything else will be trade," he said. During their talks, Trump and Xi are expected to discuss trade, the se

Original source: Korea Times