Trump talks trade, N. Korea in China
BEIJING— U.S. President Donald Trump nodded appreciatively as China’s Xi Jinping showcased a centuries-old temple in Beijing’s Forbidden City. He clapped along as the two leaders watched a Chinese children’s opera. And the pair shared a traditional tea and salutations of friendship. China poured on the pomp and pageantry for Trump’s arrival. The president and first lady Melania Trump were greeted at the airport by dozens of children who waved U.S. and Chinese flags and jumped up and down.
Trump’s two-day visit to China opened with diplomatic niceties aplenty Wednesday. But thorny issues await the two world leaders behind closed doors, including potential tensions over trade and China’s willingness to put the squeeze on North Korea over its nuclear weapons program.
Ahead of his arrival, Trump delivered a stern message to Beijing, using an address to the National Assembly in South Korea to call on nations to confront the North.
He called on “every nation, including China and Russia,” to fully imple- ment UN Security Council resolutions against North Korea enforcing sanctions aimed at depriving its government of revenue for its nuclear and ballistic missile programs. White House officials said Trump would make the same pitch to Xi in private when the two sit down together Thursday. China is North Korea’s largest trading partner and Trump is expected to demand the nation curtail its dealings with Pyongyang and expel North Korean workers from its borders. Trump has praised China for taking some steps against Pyongyang, but wants them to do more.
China is increasingly disenchanted with North Korea over its nuclear weapons development but remains wary of using its full economic leverage over its traditional ally. It fears triggering a collapse of the North’s totalitarian regime that could cause an influx of refugees into northeastern China and culminate in a U.S.-allied unified Korea on its border.