US-China differences persist despite Xi-Trump summit, says Steve Daines
Serious differences remain between the US and China despite the recent summit between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump in Washington, which was marked by rare bonhomie, Republican Senator Steve Daines has said. Daines, a close Trump aide and a key interlocutor between Washington and Beijing, said both sides still faced issues that existed before Xi’s visit and would keep working on them.
He said continued engagement was necessary as the two sides dealt with unresolved disagreements, including those over critical minerals and Taiwan. The White House has also said both countries will continue discussions on supply chain shortages involving rare earths and other critical minerals, while Trump and Xi are set to meet again next month and later in December.
Speaking to the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post, Daines said, ‘So that’s again why it’s really important to keep the dialogue going between two countries because both sides admit we’ve got some serious differences. But the answer is not to retreat. The answer is to stay engaged.’ Daines, who played a key backchannel role ahead of Xi’s visit, was responding to US Ambassador to China David Perdue’s accusation that Beijing was ‘weaponising’ its dominant position in critical minerals. Perdue made the remarks in an interview with Fox News Sunday on September 27.
Rare earths, which are essential for products ranging from smartphones to fighter jets, remain a major source of tension between the world’s two largest economies. A White House fact sheet on last week’s summit said both sides would continue working on US concerns over supply chain shortages involving rare earths and other critical minerals, with the goal of ensuring shipments return to appropriate levels. During Xi’s visit, the two sides also announced a two-month extension of the October 2025 trade truce reached in Busan, South Korea, which included China’s commitment to increase critical metals supplies to the US. China accounts for about 70 per cent of global rare earth mining and nearly 90 per cent of processing.
Taiwan remains another major point of contention between Washington and Beijing. On questions over uncertainty surrounding US arms sales to Taiwan, Daines said Trump was ‘probably one person that has that answer’. He added, ‘It’s going to be an ongoing topic. It’s not going away.’ The White House had paused a USD 14 billion arms package for Taiwan, including advanced air and missile defence systems, shortly before Trump’s visit to Beijing in May despite congressional approval. An earlier USD 11 billion US arms sale announced in December had drawn a strong reaction from Beijing. During their meeting on September 24, Xi urged Trump to explicitly oppose Taiwan independence, according to the Post. China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has vowed to reunify the self-ruled island by force if necessary.
Following the Washington summit, Trump and Xi agreed to meet again at the APEC gathering in Shenzhen next month, followed by another meeting at the Group of 20 summit in Miami in December. As the next meeting approaches, Daines said he remained in ‘close contact with a lot of folks who will be there’ and added, ‘At this point, I don’t have another trip planned to China, but that could always change.’ Overall, Daines said the summit had not removed the serious differences between the two countries, but both sides would stay engaged as talks continue on trade, critical minerals and Taiwan.
