US-China talks begin with a friendly gesture. U.S. President Donald Trump called China's Xi Jinping "a great leader and a friend" as they kicked off two days of talks on Thursday set to cover their fragile trade truce, the Iran war, and U.S. arms sales to Taiwan.

With his approval ratings dented by his entanglement in the Middle East, Trump's hotly anticipated trip to China—the first by a ‌U.S. president to America's main strategic rival since his last visit there in 2017—has taken on added significance.

Xi expressed Trump that China and US should be ‘partners, not rivals.'

The Chinese president said he was “very happy” to meet Trump in Beijing at a time of historic turbulence and when the “world stands at a new crossroads."

Xi then posed a series of questions to the US president.

“Can China and the United States transcend the so-called ‘Thucydides Trap’ and forge a new paradigm for major-power relations?"

Can we join hands to address global challenges and inject greater stability into the world? Can we uphold the well-being of our respective peoples and the shared future of humanity, working together to create a bright future for our bilateral relationship?” Xi asked.

“These are, in essence, questions posed by history, by the world, and by the people—and they constitute the answer to our times that you and I, as leaders of major nations, must jointly write.”

Joining him on the trip are a group of CEOs looking to resolve issues with China, including Elon Musk and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, a late addition. Trump has said his first request to Xi will be to "open up" China to U.S. industry.

The pomp-filled summit began at Beijing's imposing Great Hall of the People, where Xi greeted Trump on the red carpet, with the leaders shaking hands and smiling warmly.

Chinese troops goose-stepped to revolutionary anthems in front of the visiting U.S. president, while schoolchildren waving American and Chinese flags cheered as the two leaders strolled past, Trump occasionally patting Xi on the back.

"You're a great leader; sometimes people don’t like me saying it, but I say it anyway," Trump told Xi as they sat across from each other, flanked by their delegations.

"There are those who say this may be the biggest summit ever ... It's an honor to be with you. It's an honor to be your friend, and the relationship between China and the USA is going to be better than ever before," Trump said.

Xi told Trump, "Each country's success represents an opportunity for the other, and a stable China–U.S. relationship benefits the entire world. When we cooperate, both sides benefit; when we confront each other, both sides suffer."

Why It Matters?

The power dynamic has shifted since Trump's last visit to Beijing when China went out of its way to lavish Trump and buy billions in U.S. goods, said Ali Wyne, senior adviser for U.S.-China relations at International Crisis Group.

The chaos came as Senator Ronald dela Rosa urged people to mobilize and stop his arrest, which he said was imminent.

Back then "China was trying to persuade the United States of its growing status... This time around it's the United States, unprompted, of its own volition, that is acknowledging that status," Wyne said, pointing out Trump revived the term 'G2', referring to a superpower duo, when he last met Xi on the sidelines of an APEC meeting in South Korea in October.

According to the White House this week's meetings will provide plenty of face time between the leaders: after their talks at the Great Hall, they will tour the UNESCO heritage site Temple of Heaven and attend a state banquet on Thursday before taking tea and lunch together on Friday.