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President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping are meeting at the White House on Thursday for consequential talks covering Taiwan, trade, artificial intelligence and the Iran war. The diplomatic schedule combines private negotiations with military ceremony, formal hospitality and a state dinner attended by American business executives.

China analysts broadly expect the leaders’ personal relationship and competing policy goals to produce a cautious summit with few major deliverables. Even so, the meeting carries substantial geopolitical risk as Washington and Beijing confront several sensitive issues.

Xi arrived Wednesday evening at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, where Trump greeted him at the airplane stairs. U.S. service members had rolled out a red carpet before the president walked across the tarmac to welcome the Chinese leader.

A source familiar with the summit plans told CNBC that this was Trump’s first trip to the base to welcome a foreign leader. The source spoke on condition of anonymity, while the article noted that Barack Obama made the same gesture for then Pope Francis 11 years ago this week.

Xi’s arrival featured an elaborate display of American military power. Two B-1 bombers conducted a flyover as cannons fired and a U.S. Air Force band played the national anthem.

Chinese media widely featured images of the welcome and presented the ceremonial treatment as evidence of Beijing’s international standing. The attention continued Thursday when the White House staged another formal arrival ceremony.

Trump added his own public praise in a Truth Social post Thursday morning. “I met President Xi at the plane (Airport!) yesterday and he looks strong, vibrant, and fit - Better than ever,” he wrote.

Artificial intelligence will sit near the top of the summit agenda. Trump used another social media post to signal that neither government appears eager to change the current approach to the rapidly developing technology.

“Super Intelligence (SI) will be a big topic of discussion,” Trump wrote, using his preferred term for AI. “But I want to leave it exactly where it is,” he added.

Trump has resisted calls to slow the technology’s development because he believes the United States must defeat China in the contest for AI dominance. “That is China’s position also,” he wrote, suggesting Xi likewise opposes new AI regulations.

The president also said the Department of Justice serves as the American “guardrail.” That statement repeated his administration’s position that sufficient regulatory safeguards are already operating.

The Iran war is another planned topic. “I’ll be talking about that and many other subjects but it’s all coming along, including that,” Trump told reporters Wednesday evening after returning to the White House.

The United States launched “Operation Economic Outcast” last month to hurt Iran by imposing secondary sanctions on its financial enablers. That effort raised questions about possible action involving China, which the source identified as Tehran’s leading trading partner and oil buyer.

The Trump administration has said no country is exempt from potential sanctions, although it has not directly targeted Beijing. Trump has also avoided unreserved criticism of China over its reported connections with Iran before meeting Xi.

Asked about a Wall Street Journal report concerning Chinese entities and satellite imagery supplied to Tehran, Trump compared Beijing’s surveillance conduct with American practices. “They basically do what we do,” he said.

Trump and first lady Melania Trump welcomed Xi and Chinese first lady Peng Liyuan to the White House on Thursday morning. Military members lined the south portico stairs with alternating American and Chinese flags as trumpets played a fanfare.

The visit is Xi’s first to Washington since September 2015. After the arrival ceremony, the leaders were scheduled to go to the Rose Garden for a military review and then hold a bilateral meeting, while Melania Trump and Madame Peng attended a separate event.

Trump and the first lady will host the Chinese delegation at a state dinner in the White House East Room. Both leaders are expected to deliver remarks at the beginning of the event, and numerous U.S. business executives are slated to attend.

Reuters reported that Xi had been expected to bring a group of chief executives, but that delegation did not materialize. The South China Morning Post reported that a small group of Chinese executives traveled separately and had not learned whether they could participate in the events.

On Friday, the presidents and first ladies are scheduled to have private tea at the White House and tour the National Archives before Xi departs. White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly described the visit as reciprocal hospitality following Trump’s summer summit in China.

DISCLAIMER: GoldInvestors.news is not a registered investment, legal or tax advisor or broker/dealer. All investment/financial opinions expressed by GoldInvestors.news are from the personal research and experience of the owner of the site and are intended as educational material. Although best efforts are made to ensure that all information is accurate and up to date, occasionally unintended errors and misprints may occur.