What we covered
• Back in the US: President Donald Trump has returned after a two-day summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. In a Fox interview, Trump said Taiwan was the “most important” issue for Xi during their talks. The US leader said he’d like the situation with the island to “stay the way it is.”
• US visit in the fall: The meetings ended without any substantive agreements announced on key issues, although Trump said “a lot of different problems” were settled. China’s foreign ministry touted the summit as “historical” and said Xi will visit the US in the fall.
• Iran war looms: The conflict loomed large, with Trump saying he and Xi agreed Tehran should not have a nuclear weapon. Meanwhile, as Trump flew back to DC, talks hosted by the State Department secured a 45-day extension to the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon that was due to expire on Sunday.
Our live coverage of President Donald Trump’s trip to Beijing to meet with President Xi Jinping has ended. Scroll below to learn more about what happened over the two days of meetings. And read our key takeaways here.
Back at the White House, Trump says the Beijing summit was a "historic moment"
President Donald Trump is back in the US after what he called a successful trip to China.
Trump says Xi's response to request to release Jimmy Lai from prison was "not positive"
President Donald Trump said he talked with Chinese leader Xi Jinping “at length” about the release from jail of former Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai and Pastor Ezra Jin Mingri.
The release of the two is “under consideration,” Trump said in an interview with Fox News’ Bret Baier, but the response to letting Lai out of prison was “not positive.”
Lai, 78, was sentenced to 20 years in prison earlier this year after being convicted of national security and sedition charges in Hong Kong.
The trial was closely watched by Western world leaders, including Trump, who previously vowed to “get him out.”
He did say he felt “very optimistic,” however, about the release of Jin, who was swept up in a mass crackdown across various congregations and Chinese cities.
“The other one, I think, will maybe get very strong consideration,” Trump said.
For context: Lai was convicted in December 2025 on national security and sedition charges and sentenced to 20 years in prison. The self-made billionaire was among the highest-profile government critics charged since Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law on the semi-autonomous city of Hong Kong in 2020.
Both Beijing and Hong Kong’s government have repeatedly rejected international criticism of Lai’s prosecution and dismissed accusations that his jailing was politically motivated or an assault on press freedom.
US allowed 3 Chinese tankers to exit Strait of Hormuz before president's trip, Trump says
The United States allowed three Chinese tankers filled with Iranian oil out of the Strait of Hormuz earlier this week, President Donald Trump said today.
The tankers were allowed to transit the waterway “because we allowed that to happen,” the president said in an interview with Fox News.
Trump is just getting back to the US from his visit to China and meetings with the country’s leader Xi Jinping. The vessels were allowed out of the Strait before the trip, Trump said.
Iran has effectively shut the strait to normal commercial transit, declaring that ships must pay a transit fee. The US, in turn, has blocked Iran’s ports.
Some more context: Iran has claimed that some 30 vessels – including at least one Chinese ship – have passed through the Strait of Hormuz since Wednesday night, state media reported, adding that it was “with Iran’s permission.”
Trump calls pending arm sale to Taiwan "good negotiating chip"
President Donald Trump said the pending $14 billion deal to sell arms to Taiwan is a “very good negotiating chip.”
“I haven’t approved it yet. We’re going to see what happens,” Trump told Fox News’ Bret Baier in an interview taped in Beijing that is airing Friday.
“I’m holding that in abeyance, and it depends on China. It depends. It is a very good negotiating chip for us, frankly. It’s a lot of weapons.”
“You know, when you look at the odds, China is a very, very powerful, big country. That’s a very small island. Think of it, it’s 59 miles away. 59 miles. We’re 9,500 miles away. That’s a little bit of a difficult problem,” the president added.
“I do say this: Taiwan would be very smart to cool it a little bit. China would be very smart to cool it a little bit. They ought to both cool it.”
Trump says he'd like to see China-Taiwan "stay the way it is"
President Donald Trump said he’d like to see things in China and Taiwan stay the same, telling Fox News that discussion around the island was a chief concern for Chinese President Xi Jinping during the summit in Beijing.
“I’d like to see it stay the way it is,” Trump said in an interview airing Friday evening.
Calling it the “most important” issue for Xi, Trump said, “We talked the whole night about that issue. I think I know more about Taiwan right now than I know about almost any country.”
Trump also speculated that China will not attack the island during the remainder of his term, though he suspects it could happen after he leaves office.
Trump tip-toed over what to call Taiwan during the interview: “We will call it a place, because nobody knows how to define it – but they don’t want to see it go independent.”
Asked whether the Taiwanese people should feel more or less secure after the summit with Xi, Trump said, “Neutral.”
Some context: Under the “One China” policy, the US acknowledges China’s position that Taiwan is part of China but has never officially recognized the Communist Party’s claim to the island. Washington maintains robust unofficial relations with Taiwan and is bound by law (under the Taiwan Relations Act) to provide Taiwan with defensive weapons, but has remained intentionally ambiguous on whether it would intervene militarily in the event of a Chinese attack — a policy known as “strategic ambiguity.”
Trump demurs on providing arms to Taiwan but asserts "nothing has changed" on US posture
President Donald Trump said “we will see what happens” when asked if he would approve an arms package to Taiwan, adding that he was not looking “to travel 9,500 miles to fight a war.”
However, he also said “nothing has changed” about the United States’ posture toward Taiwan after this week’s summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
“I will say this: I’m not looking for somebody to go independent, and we’re supposed to travel 9,500 miles to fight a war. I’m not looking for that. I want them to cool down. I want China to cool down,” Trump told Bret Baier in a Fox News interview set to air Friday evening.
On the arms package, Trump said in the interview, taped earlier this week: “I have not approved it yet. We will see what happens.”
On Air Force One earlier, Trump said he discussed the potential $14 billion arms sale to Taiwan with Xi in “great detail,” similarly adding that fighting a war 9,500 miles away is not in the best interest of the United States.
Under the longstanding “One China” policy, the US acknowledges China’s position that Taiwan is part of China but has never officially recognized the Communist Party’s claim to the self-governing island.
Washington maintains robust unofficial relations with Taiwan and has sold billions of dollars in advanced weapons to the island, with bipartisan approval, but has remained intentionally ambiguous on whether it would intervene militarily in the event of a Chinese attack.
While Trump heads home, talks in Washington secure extension to Israel-Lebanon ceasefire
As President Donald Trump flies home to the United States, talks hosted by the State Department in Washington have secured an extension to the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon that was due to expire on Sunday.
The ceasefire will be extended by 45 days following the latest round of “highly-productive talks between Israel and Lebanon,” State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott said Friday.
Piggott said the two countries would reconvene for “the political track of negotiations on June 2 and June 3” and that a security track “will be launched at the Pentagon on May 29 with military delegations from both countries.”
Hezbollah has informed the president indirectly, they are prepared for a direct ceasefire if the Israelis agree to one, according to an official source.
The Lebanese delegation welcomed the outcome and said the ceasefire extension and US-facilitated security track would provide “critical breathing space for our citizens, reinforce state institutions, and advance a political pathway toward lasting stability,” in a statement.
The extension of the tenuous ceasefire, during which there have been repeated cross-border exchanges of fire between Israel and Hezbollah, will come into effect on Sunday. A State Department official described the atmosphere of the talks as “very positive, even exceeding expectations”
Under the terms of the ceasefire, Israel is allowed to conduct “defensive” operations. Israel’s Ambassador to the US Yechiel Leiter described the talks as “frank and constructive” in a post on X. “There will be ups and downs, but the potential for success is great,” he added.
Why a clip of Trump looking at a notebook became the latest viral moment from China visit
A video that has garnered millions of views convinced some on the internet that US President Donald Trump snuck a peek at Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s personal notebook. But a closer look shows the notebook appears to carry the American presidential seal.
Watch the video below to catch up on the latest viral moment from Trump’s trip to Beijing:
A viral clip from Beijing sparked online speculation that President Donald Trump was trying to sneak a look at Chinese President Xi Jinping’s notes. But a closer look at the footage tells a different story.
China's FM on Taiwan: We sensed the US "attaches importance to China’s concerns"
China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi said that Beijing senses that President Donald Trump understands China’s position on Taiwan.
“The Taiwan question is the most important issue in China-US relations; it affects the situation as a whole,” Wang reiterated. “We hope the US side will abide by the one-China principle and the three China-US joint communiques and fulfill its due international obligations.”
The “one-China principle” refers to China’s view that Taiwan is part of its territory, which it wants to “reunify,” despite having never controlled the self-governing, democratic island. Washington maintains robust unofficial relations with Taiwan.
What the US has said: Trump told reporters on Air Force One that he made “no commitment either way” on Taiwan during his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, after Beijing warned the issue could spark conflict between the two countries. The US State Department said earlier this week that US policy on the self-governing island is “unchanged.”
What Taiwan has said: Taiwan’s foreign minister said on Friday that the island’s government closely followed the meetings between Trump and Xi, emphasizing that Taipei is “maintaining good communication” with the US. And he highlighted Rubio’s comments, saying “the long-standing US policy toward Taiwan, spanning multiple presidents and administrations, has not changed,”
China says meetings had "substantial outcomes" and Xi will visit US this fall
China’s foreign ministry said President Xi Jinping will visit the United States this fall at the request of President Donald Trump, as China touted the summit this week as “historical” and substantive.
“This was an important meeting in which the two heads of state engaged in in-depth communication and achieved substantial outcomes,” Foreign Minister Wang Yi told state media, also calling it “a historical meeting.” He particularly touted progress on trade and economic issues.
On trade: Wang said that trade negotiators reached “overall balanced and positive outcomes, including continuing to implement all the consensuses reached in previous consultations.” China and the US addressed “concerns over agricultural product market access” and promoted the expansion of trade under a framework of reciprocal tariff reductions. The two countries also agreed to establish a trade council and an investment council, Wang said.
On Iran: Regarding the war in Iran, Wang said: “China encourages both the US and Iran to continue resolving their differences and disputes, including the nuclear issue, through negotiations, and advocates for the Strait of Hormuz to be reopened as soon as possible on the basis of maintaining a ceasefire.”
On Ukraine: The Chinese government – which maintains strong ties with Russia – said that it hopes the conflict will end as soon as possible. “China and the US are willing to continue maintaining communication and play a constructive role in promoting a political settlement of the crisis,” Wang said. The Kremlin said earlier on Friday that Russian President Vladimir Putin is planning a visit to China.
Stocks sink, yields surge as higher oil prices stoke market jitters
Stocks fell, oil prices climbed and bond yields surged Friday as a cautious tone spread on Wall Street and investors reckoned with concerns about resurgent inflation.
The Dow fell 425 points, or 0.85%, retreating below the 50,000-point threshold. The S&P 500 sank 1%, and the Nasdaq fell 1.35%, each pulling back from record highs set Thursday.
Brent crude oil rose 3% and surpassed $109 per barrel. US crude oil gained 3.3% and hit $104.50 per barrel.
Bonds fell, pushing yields higher, as investors wrestled with inflation nerves and uncertainty about whether the Federal Reserve might eventually have to raise interest rates to combat inflation.
The benchmark 10-year US Treasury yield, which influences mortgage rates, jumped nearly a tenth of a point to 4.57%, its highest level in a year. The two-year US Treasury yield rose to 4.07%, its highest level in over a year. The 30-year yield jumped to 5.11%.
Stocks have surged in recent weeks on enthusiasm about AI. But the bond market is showing signs of strain. Higher bond yields can pull investors away from stocks, posing a headwind for the rally.
Bond yields have climbed across the globe over nerves about higher oil prices, government spending and a shift in outlooks for central banks. The 30-year gilt yield in the United Kingdom hit its highest level since 1998.
“Rates have been on an upward trajectory overnight on inflation and deficit concerns,” Mohit Kumar, chief economist for Europe at Jefferies, said in a note.
Trump not committing to Taiwan arms sale marks a win for China
After two days of talks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, President Donald Trump refused to commit to an arms sale with Taiwan in a move that marks a win for China.
Aboard Air Force One, Trump told reporters that he and Xi discussed Taiwan “in great detail” during their meetings but declined to answer directly about whether the US would defend Taiwan in the event of a conflict with China. Trump added that on the arms sale to Taiwan, “I’ll make a determination over the next early short period of time.”
But a pause, if we could read it that way, would be a win for China. While Trump could still change, of course, and commit to an arms deal, his comments that he’ll think about it leave an opening for the Chinese leader.
The president also echoed Xi’s lines on the issue, telling reporters that Xi argued during their talks that China had Taiwan for thousands of years and he “doesn’t want to see a movement for independence.”
Under the longstanding “One China” policy, the US acknowledges China’s position that Taiwan is part of China but has never officially recognized the Communist Party’s claim to the self-governing island.
Washington maintains robust unofficial relations with Taiwan and has sold billions of dollars in advanced weapons to the island, with bipartisan approval, but has remained intentionally ambiguous on whether it would intervene militarily in the event of a Chinese attack.
Under the decades-old Taiwan Relations Act, Washington is also bound by law to provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself. But some US and Taiwanese officials have long feared that Trump may be inclined to use Taiwan as a bargaining chip with China.
CNN’s Kaanita Iyer, Jennifer Hansler, Zachary Cohen and Isabelle Khurshudyan contributed reporting.
Taiwan's FM says it will deepen US ties, maintains good communication with Trump administration
Taiwan’s foreign minister has said the island closely followed the meetings between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, emphasizing that Taipei is “maintaining good communication” with the American side and will deepen its ties with the US.
“Just as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio explained, the long-standing US policy toward Taiwan, spanning multiple presidents and administrations, has not changed,” Taiwanese Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung said in a statement on Friday. “The US government has also reiterated its opposition to any actions that coerce or force a change to the status quo, emphasizing that disrupting regional stability is highly detrimental to the US, China and the entire world.”
The foreign minister also reiterated the self-governing island’s position that China is “the primary source of threat causing widespread concern in the international community.”
“We will continue to deepen cooperation with the United States and like-minded nations in the Indo-Pacific, strengthen our self-defense capabilities, and jointly safeguard the peace, stability and prosperity of the Taiwan Strait and the Indo-Pacific region,” Lin added.
Latest US comments: President Donald Trump said Friday that he made “no commitment either way” on Taiwan during his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, after Beijing warned the issue could spark conflict between the two countries.
That stands in contrast to Rubio’s comments earlier this week, when he emphasized that the US policy towards Taiwan is “unchanged.” In an interview with NBC News posted Thursday morning, Rubio said: “From our perspective, any forced change in the status quo in the situation would be bad for both countries.”
Trump says he has had communications with Kim Jong Un, says they have "very good relationship"
President Donald Trump said Friday he has had communications with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and described the pair’s relationship as “very good.”
“You know, I have a very good relationship with Kim Jong Un, pretty quiet.” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on his return flight from China.
Asked if he has had any communications with him, Trump answered: “Yes.”
“Doesn’t matter, I don’t tell you about that,” Trump said when pressed how many times the two have held talks.
“He’s been respectful of our country. I want him to be respectful. He’s been respectful of our country,” Trump added.
Trump told reporters he had discussed North Korea with Chinese President Xi Jinping during his trip to Beijing.
The president’s comments come months after the North Korean leader previously said the US war with Iran proves his country made the right decision to keep its nuclear weapons, accusing Washington of “acts of state sponsored terrorism and aggression” in a speech during which he did not mention Iran by name.
Trump says first sentence of Iran’s latest proposal was “unacceptable”
US President Donald Trump said on Friday that the first sentence of Iran’s latest proposal was “unacceptable,” claiming that Iran has backtracked on its stance regarding its nuclear program.
The first sentence was an “unacceptable sentence, because they have fully agreed no nuclear, and if they have any nuclear of any form, I don’t read the rest,” he said, adding that he is unsatisfied with the “level of guarantee from them.”
He said that Iran had agreed to give up its “nuclear dust” – referring to Tehran’s enriched uranium – but “then they took it back,” adding that they would agree to it eventually in his view.
Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Friday that the topic of uranium enrichment “is currently not on the agenda of discussions or negotiations,” but will be addressed in later stages, according to the semi-official news agency Tasnim.
Iran denies it intends to build a nuclear weapon but has so far refused to relinquish its stockpile of enriched uranium.
Asked if Chinese President Xi Jinping made any commitments to put pressure on the Iranians to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, Trump said “we don’t need favors” but that “we may have to do a little cleanup work.”
“We had a little month-long ceasefire, I guess you’d call it, but we have a blockade that’s so effective, that’s why we did the ceasefire.”
It comes after Trump wrote yesterday (Friday morning Beijing time) that his military campaign against Iran is “to be continued!” — suggesting he is still strongly considering resuming attacks amid a fragile ceasefire.
Markets are not loving what they're seeing from the Xi-Trump summit
Nebulous agreements on agricultural purchases. Tepid commitments on oil purchases. Some talk about opening up microchip sales to China. No firm deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Trump said tariffs didn’t even come up.
Investors are decrying the lack of specifics from President Donald Trump’s meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
Trading on their disappointment, stock investors are ready to sell Friday morning. Dow futures were down more than 300 points, or 0.6%. The broader S&P 500 futures fell 1%, and Nasdaq futures were 1.4% lower.
With no firm resolution to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, Brent oil futures rose 3%, above $108 a barrel.
Soybean futures sold off sharply after the United States spoke of a vague commitment from China to buy from US farmers — a promise it has made in the past without following through.
And bond yields rose as traders grew cautious about rising inflation.
Trump says China may release detained pastors but case of Jimmy Lai is "a tougher one"
US President Donald Trump said he brought up the issue of political prisoners held in China, including imprisoned Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai, during his meetings with Chinese President Xi Jingping.
“I think he’s giving very serious consideration to the pastor, the pastors,” Trump said, referring to leaders of underground Christian churches that China has detained amid a mass crackdown on Christian congregations.
For context: Lai was convicted in December 2025 on national security and sedition charges and sentenced to 20 years in prison. The 78-year-old self-made billionaire was among the highest-profile government critics charged since Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law on the semi-autonomous city of Hong Kong in 2020.
Both Beijing and Hong Kong’s government have repeatedly rejected international criticism of Lai’s prosecution and dismissed accusations that his jailing was politically motivated or an assault on press freedom.
Trump says he and Xi discussed Taiwan "in great detail"
President Donald Trump said Friday that he and Chinese President Xi Jinping discussed Taiwan and US arms sales to the island “in great detail” during their meetings.
“We discussed the Taiwan, the whole thing with the arm sales, in great detail, actually, and I’ll be making decisions, but you know, I think the last thing we need right now is a war that’s 9,500 miles away,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One as he left China.
The president reiterated, saying “the last thing we need right now is a war,” an answer that comes as the ongoing war between the United States and Iran continues.
Asked whether the United States would defend Taiwan in the event of a conflict with China, Trump declined to answer directly, saying Xi had posed the same question to him earlier in the day.
“There’s only one person that knows that, you know who it is? Me, I’m the only person,” Trump said.
“That question was asked to me today by President Xi,” Trump added, explaining that Xi asked whether the United States would defend Taiwan. “I said I don’t talk about that.”
Trump says he is considering lifting sanctions on Chinese companies buying Iranian oil
US President Donald Trump said he is weighing lifting sanctions on Chinese companies that have been buying Iranian oil, as the war and disruptions to oil markets drag on.
“I’m going to make a decision over the next few days. We did talk about that,” Trump told reporters on Friday as he flew back from his state visit with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Trump added that he thinks Xi would like to see the strait opened up, noting that China gets a significant portion of its oil from the Gulf while claiming that the US “gets none. We don’t need it.”
For context: Iran is one of the world’s top oil producers, exporting an average of 1.69 million barrels per day in 2025, according to analytics company Kpler. Roughly 90% of its oil goes to China, according to the US government. China has not sanctioned Iranian crude and says it opposes sanctions on Iran’s oil, CNN previously reported.
Because of the widespread sanctions, Iran relies on an opaque fleet of aging tankers to move its crude around the world. China does not officially declare Iranian crude imports and often obscures the origin of the oil as Malaysian, according to Ying Cong Loh, a crude-oil market analyst at Kpler.
CNN’s Lex Harvey and Isaac Yee contributed to this report.
