Trump's China rhetoric shifts from 'cheats' to 'great friendship'

September 25, 2026 at 02:46 PM2 min

This digest was compiled by AI from multiple sources — links to the originals are below.

US President Donald Trump welcomed Chinese President Xi Jinping at Joint Base Andrews on September 24, 2026, marking the first tarmac greeting of a foreign leader by a US president since 1962. The meeting extended a fragile trade war truce for two months but delivered little significant shift in relations. The warm reception contrasts with Trump's past rhetoric, which included calling China a 'cheat' and an 'enemy'.

Key Facts

Trump greeted Xi on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews, the first such greeting for a foreign leader by a US president since John F. Kennedy welcomed UK Prime Minister Harold Macmillan in 1962.
The Xi-Trump meeting extended a fragile trade war truce for another two months.
In August 2012, Trump posted on Twitter that China was caught cheating in the Olympics and that its M.O. was to 'Lie, Cheat & Steal' in international dealings.
In his 2015 book Crippled America, Trump wrote that China was 'our enemy' and had destroyed entire industries, cost tens of thousands of jobs, and stolen technology.
At a May 2016 rally in Indiana, Trump said China was 'raping our country' and called it 'the greatest theft in the history of the world'.

The Washington Welcome

Trump went down to Joint Base Andrews near Washington to greet Xi on the tarmac on September 24, 2026. This was the first time a US president has greeted a foreign leader in such a way since 1962, when John F. Kennedy welcomed UK Prime Minister Harold Macmillan. Washington laid on hours of pageantry, lavish tours for Xi's entourage, and praise for the Chinese president and his wife. The Xi-Trump meeting delivered little significant shift in relations beyond extending a fragile trade war truce for another two months.

Past Rhetoric

In August 2012, Trump posted on Twitter that China was caught cheating in the Olympics and that its M.O. was to 'Lie, Cheat & Steal' in all international dealings. At a July 2015 campaign event in South Carolina, Trump said state dinners for Chinese leaders should be replaced with a trip to McDonald's. In his 2015 book Crippled America, Trump wrote that China was 'our enemy' and had destroyed entire industries, cost tens of thousands of jobs, and stolen technology. At a May 2016 rally in Indiana, Trump said China was 'raping our country' and called it 'the greatest theft in the history of the world'. At a September 2020 Labor Day news conference, Trump said no country had 'ripped us off like China has' and that the US had lost billions of dollars dealing with China.