Who holds the leverage? Five cards Trump and Xi bring to the table
Ahead of their September 24 meeting, Donald Trump and Xi Jinping each hold significant leverage in the US-China rivalry. Trump can deploy tariffs and tech restrictions, while Xi can counter with China's manufacturing base, rare earths, and economic ties, reflecting a historical pattern of strategic necessity.
Why it matters
The outcome of this high-stakes negotiation could redefine global trade, technology access, and geopolitical alliances, impacting economies and international relations worldwide for years to come.
The handshake will last seconds. The bargaining could shape the next phase of the world's most consequential rivalry.When Donald Trump and Xi Jinping sit down in Washington on September 24, neither man arrives empty-handed. Trump can threaten tariffs, restrict China's access to American technology and wield the world's dominant financial system. Xi can retaliate through China's vast manufacturing base, its grip on rare earths and its economic relationships with countries Washington wants to pressure.Also read: Five reasons India should watch Trump-Xi handshakeThere is a useful historical precedent for the idea that US-China summits are less about friendship than mutual necessity. When Richard Nixon travelled to Beijing in 1972, Washington and Beijing were still formally estranged after more than two decades of hostility. Yet both had strategic reasons to talk.
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