Trump-Xi summit will be no ‘Nixon in China’ moment – that they are talking is enough for now

Taiwan, trade and AI regulation are on the agenda. But will there be progress on any of these issues during Beijing sit-down?

By: Rana Mitter, Harvard Kennedy School, The Conversation

Outlets: The Conversation

Published: May 11, 2026

Words: 1,445

Last Updated: 2 months, 2 weeks ago

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By Rana Mitter, Harvard Kennedy School

Meetings between Chinese and American leaders are not exactly routine, but few are historically groundbreaking.

The exceptions include the very first visit by a sitting U.S. president to China, when Richard Nixon met with Chairman Mao Zedong in Beijing in February 1972 – at a time when America did not even formally recognize the People’s Republic of China. Deng Xiaoping’s visit to the U.S. in 1979 generated …

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