Big Deal, Small Deal, or No Deal? Possible Outcomes of a Trump-Xi Summit

During the second Trump administration, US-China relations have careened from moments of high anxiety and brinksmanship, to periods of unsteady ceasefire. The two governments are now preparing a face-to-face meeting between President Trump and President Xi, and the summit agenda will include a wide range of pressing economic, political, and security issues. While some hope for a big, beautiful deal that broadly stabilizes the relationship, others worry that any sort of agreement could damage American interests. What is the true state of the bilateral relationship? What is the United States’ China strategy? What kind of deal makes the most sense for the United States – and for China? And what issues should not be on the negotiating table at all? 

Join the Departments of Economic Security and Technology and Geopolitics and Foreign Policy for an online event to discuss these critical issues and the overall trajectory of the US-China relationship. CSIS’s Trustee Chair in Chinese Business and Economics Scott Kennedy will moderate a discussion with four other CSIS China experts: Tom Christensen (Pritzker Chair), Henrietta Levin (Senior Fellow, Freeman Chair in China Studies), Bonny Lin (Director, China Power Project and Senior Adviser), and Ilaria Mazzocco (Deputy Director and Senior Fellow, Trustee Chair in Chinese Business and Economics). 

This event is made possible by general support to CSIS.