Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump are set to hold their first face-to-face talks since 2019 on Thursday in Busan, South Korea. The venue is away from the main Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) events--taking place 85 km away in Gyeongju.
The Chinese foreign ministry confirmed that the meeting would allow both leaders to “exchange views on bilateral relations and issues of mutual interest”, as relations between Beijing and Washington remain fraught over trade, technology, and security.
According to South Korean reports, the talks are likely to be held at Narae Maru, a highly secure reception hall within Busan’s Gimhae International Airport, located inside a South Korean air force base. The venue has previously hosted high-level summits, including the 2005 APEC meeting and the 2019 South Korea–ASEAN summit.
Analysts believe the decision to hold the meeting at a military base reflects heightened security and intelligence concerns, amid possible anti-China and anti-US protests.
Speaking aboard Air Force One, Trump said discussions would focus on fentanyl flows into the US and American agricultural exports. His comments followed a Wall Street Journal report that Washington may reduce fentanyl-related tariffs on Chinese goods by half, in exchange for Beijing’s cooperation in curbing exports of precursor chemicals used in producing the synthetic opioid.
Beijing responded that it had already provided “positive results” in this area and remained open to further cooperation, but urged the US to “take concrete actions” to create conditions conducive to collaboration.
Trump also hinted at a possible pause in China’s rare earth export controls, suggesting the two sides might “work out something”. He voiced optimism about reaching a “great deal” that would benefit both economies, calling it “something very exciting for everybody”.
The Xi-Trump meeting comes just days after China-US trade negotiators met in Kuala Lumpur and reached a preliminary framework agreement to extend their tariff truce.
In a related diplomatic exchange, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi spoke with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio earlier this week, calling for both nations to “meet each other halfway” and resolve differences through dialogue rather than confrontation.
The upcoming summit in Busan, therefore, represents a crucial attempt by both leaders to stabilise a relationship that has deteriorated over the years — from the trade war and tech sanctions to disputes over Taiwan and the South China Sea.
South Korean President Lee Jae-myung is set to meet Trump and Xi separately — Trump on Wednesday and Xi on Saturday — in Gyeongju. However, Trump will skip the main APEC events, instead delivering a keynote speech at a CEO luncheon and attending a leaders’ dinner before returning to Washington.
South Korea marks the final leg of Trump’s Asia tour, following visits to Malaysia and Japan earlier this week. Xi, meanwhile, is scheduled to arrive in Busan on Thursday and depart on Saturday.
The Busan meeting — away from the diplomatic spotlight of the APEC summit — underscores how both sides are opting for controlled engagement as they navigate an increasingly complex relationship marked by competition, mistrust and the need for pragmatic cooperation.
