US industry leaders are in China to 'pay respects', Trump says

In his remarks, Donald Trump also briefly spoke about the huge cohort of business leaders who are accompanying him on the trip.

Trump has brought along some of the biggest names in US industry, including Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and Apple CEO Tim Cook.He said they are here to “pay respects” and build business in the nation.

“We have amazing people, and they’re all with me,” Trump said during opening remarks.

“We asked the top 30 in the world. Every single one of them said yes, and I didn’t want the second or the third in the company. I wanted only the top. And they’re here today to pay respects to you and to China, and they look forward to trade and doing business, and it’s going to be totally reciprocal on our behalf,” he said.

Here are some of the executives Trump brought with him to China for his high-stakes summit with president Xi Jinping:

Shweta Sharma14 May 2026 04:50

Recap: Trump and Xi meet in Beijing

Donald Trump and Xi Jinping have met in Beijing for a high-profile, closely choreographed summit set against a backdrop of tight security, a military display and a red carpet welcome at the Great Hall of the People.

The two leaders shook hands on arrival before walking together along the red carpet as senior US officials – including Marco Rubio, Pete Hegseth and business figures such as Elon Musk – looked on.

A formal welcome ceremony followed, with marching troops, music and a full guard of honour.

There was no hug between the two leaders, with the encounter remaining strictly protocol-driven.In opening remarks, Xi Jinping stressed the significance of the moment, saying “the whole world is watching our meeting. Currently transformation not seen in a century is accelerating across the globe and the international situation is fluid and turbulent”.

He framed the talks around global responsibility and US–China relations, asking: “The world has come to a new crossroads: can China and the US overcome the Thucydides trap and create a new paradigm of relations? Can we meet global challenges together and provide more stability for the world? Can we, in the interest of our world, of our two peoples, and the future of humanity, build a brighter future for our bilateral relations?”

“These are the questions vital to history, to the world, and to the people. They are the questions of our times that you and I need to answer as leaders of major countries.”

Trump, in response, said it was “an honour” to meet Xi, adding: “We’ve gotten along, when there were difficulties we worked it out. I would call you and you would call me. People don’t know, whenever we had a problem we worked it out very quickly.”

He described Xi as “a great leader” and said he had brought “the best business leaders in the world” on the trip “only the top people here today to pay respects to you”.

Calling it “the biggest summit ever”, Trump said he looked forward to the discussions ahead, adding: “It’s an honour to be with you, it’s an honour to be your friend,” and expressing confidence that US–China relations would be “better than ever before”.

Shweta Sharma14 May 2026 04:30

No women at the table as Trump and Xi meet in Beijing

An interesting point emerging from today’s meeting is the visible absence of women at the negotiating table.

All those seated around the long table were men from both the US and Chinese sides, as Trump and Xi delivered their remarks across the room at the Great Hall of the People.

Women remain underrepresented at the highest levels of power in both Washington and Beijing. Neither country has ever had a female head of state, and China’s Politburo currently has no women among its top leadership.

While Trump’s White House chief of staff Susie Wiles is the first woman to hold that role, she did not travel to Beijing. White House chief of protocol Monica Crowley is present on the trip but is not part of the core meeting with Xi.

At present, just four women serve in Trump’s cabinet following recent departures and reshuffles.

Shweta Sharma14 May 2026 04:27

Full list of U.S. presidents who have visited China

Here is a full list of U.S. presidents who have made trips to China:

Rachel Dobkin14 May 2026 04:00

Trump says this is the ‘biggest summit ever’

Trump repeatedly played up his personal relationship with Xi as the two leaders sat down with their teams to start bilateral talks.

“It’s an honour to be with you,” Trump said. “It’s an honour to be your friend and the relationship between China and the USA is going to be better than ever before.”

Trump said he was "particularly impressed" by the crowds of children who greeted him."They were happy. They were beautiful."

"You and I have known each other now for a long time. In fact, the longest relationship of our two countries that any president has had, and that's to me, an honour. We've had a fantastic relationship. We've gotten along. When there were difficulties, we worked it out."

Shweta Sharma14 May 2026 03:56

Rubio and Trump offer contrasting takes on Iran discussions in China

Secretary of state Marco Rubio, who is in China as part of Donald Trump’s entourage, said administration officials will underscore that “economies are melting down because of [the Iran] crisis” and that will result in consumers “buying less Chinese product.”

“So it’s in their interest to resolve this,” Rubio said in an interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity.

“We hope to convince them to play a more active role in getting Iran to walk away from what they’re doing now and trying to do now in the Persian Gulf,” Rubio said.

The message contrasts with comments by Trump, who downplayed differences with Xi over Iran before departing from Washington.

“We have a lot of things to discuss,” Trump told reporters. “I wouldn’t say Iran is one of them, to be honest with you, because we have Iran very much under control.”

Shweta Sharma14 May 2026 03:46

The contrast between Xi's remarks and President Trump's was quite stark

While Xi opened the meeting by posing several key questions – including whether the U.S. and China can "overcome the Thucydides trap," a term coined by U.S. political scientist Graham Allison for when relations between a rising power and an existing great power trend towards war –Trump used his speaking time in front of the cameras to praise Xi and talk about himself and the Chinese leader's personal relationship and brag about the large delegation of corporate leaders who accompanied him to Beijing.

Andrew Feinberg14 May 2026 03:46