Trump and Xi in Beijing, With Rush Doshi

Trump and Xi in Beijing, With Rush Doshi

From The President’s Inbox by Council on Foreign Relations

May 13, 2026 · 38 min · Episode 89

About this episode

This episode discusses the implications of the Trump-Xi summit in Beijing and its impact on U.S.-China relations.

This episode unpacks President Donald Trump’s upcoming summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing, the first by a sitting U.S. President in nearly a decade, as the United States and China work through a tense period of détente. Host: James M. Lindsay, Mary and David Boies Distinguished Senior Fellow in U.S. Foreign Policy, CFR Guest: Rush Doshi, C.V. Starr Senior Fellow for Asia Studies and Director of the China Strategy Initiative We Discuss: Whether the Trump-Xi summit will represent continuity or a new phase in the U.S.-China relationship. How China assesses the military and economic balance of power with the United States. What last year's trade war revealed and how it produced the current period of managed competition. As Rush Doshi puts it: “I don’t think there’s going to be a large structural breakthrough.” What deliverables the Trump administration is seeking from the summit, and why negotiations are focused on process mechanisms and stability. How China has responded to the U.S.-Iran war and why it has stayed on the sidelines despite having clear strategic interests. Why China welcomes U.S. entanglement in foreign conflicts but fears their effects on global…

People in this episode

Host: James M. Lindsay

Guest: Rush Doshi

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Organizations: Council on Foreign Relations, China Strategy Initiative

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