Thinking About China
Opinion

What the Xi–Trump Summit Failed to Address

Both leaders effectively affirmed the status quo, and in doing so, they failed to address critical matters that urgently need attention.
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What the Xi–Trump Summit Failed to Address
U.S. President Donald Trump boards Air Force One before his departure from Beijing Capital Airport in Beijing on May 15, 2026. Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images
Milton Ezrati
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Commentary
May’s summit between Chinese leader Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump effectively ended with an agreement to prolong the standoff arrangements settled late last year. Each got promises from the other that they could bring home, but essentially, they left with last year’s arrangements intact.
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Milton Ezrati
Milton Ezrati
Author
Milton Ezrati is a contributing editor at The National Interest, an affiliate of the Center for the Study of Human Capital at the University at Buffalo (SUNY), and chief economist for Vested, a New York-based communications firm. Before joining Vested, he served as chief market strategist and economist for Lord, Abbett & Co. He also writes frequently for City Journal and blogs regularly for Forbes. His latest book is “Thirty Tomorrows: The Next Three Decades of Globalization, Demographics, and How We Will Live.”