U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Wednesday the United States is open to extending a U.S.–China trade truce that expires Nov. 10 or examining a larger arrangement Beijing raised in weekend talks, after a second preparatory meeting with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng ahead of President Donald Trump’s White House summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping. No agreement from the Wednesday session was announced.
Bessent told reporters that China floated a bigger trade arrangement on Sunday and that Washington would weigh continuing the arrangement struck last year in Busan, South Korea, or looking at the broader proposal. He said either path was acceptable and that the administration would “do what’s best for the American people.” In a post on X, he called the Wednesday discussions substantive and said Treasury was seeking commitments that protect U.S. workers, farmers, and businesses while advancing economic and national security interests.
Bessent, He, and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer met Sunday in New York around the United Nations General Assembly to prepare trade and artificial-intelligence topics for the leaders. Those talks covered an AI safety communications “hotline” Bessent said both sides agreed to launch for notifying each other about safety incidents; Xinhua (opens in new tab) reported that the sides held dialogues on AI-related issues without confirming that mechanism. Greer said Monday that talks on extending the truce would continue and that he believed both sides wanted an extension, while stressing pressure for China to meet critical-minerals commitments.
The nearly year-long truce, reached when Trump and Xi met in South Korea in October 2025, lowered steep bilateral tariffs and included Chinese steps to ease rare-earth and critical-mineral restrictions. U.S. officials have said rare-earth deliveries have fallen short of expectations. Sunday’s agenda also included topics from the May Beijing meeting, such as possible tariff cuts on some non-strategic goods through a “Board of Trade” process and Chinese purchases of Boeing aircraft and agricultural products — proposals that remain under discussion and have not been announced as finalized.
Xi arrived Wednesday at Joint Base Andrews for his first state visit to the United States since 2015; Associated Press reporting carried by PBS NewsHour said Trump planned a rare planeside greeting rather than waiting at the White House. Formal White House events are scheduled for Thursday and Friday, including a state arrival ceremony and state dinner. Trade, tariffs, rare earths, and AI are expected on the leaders’ agenda.