US, China strategic interests diverge even as both sides talk denuclearization; summit seen as driven by domestic politics with little chance of major outcomes

US President Donald Trump (left) and Chinese President Xi Jinping [AP]
US President Donald Trump (left) and Chinese President Xi Jinping [AP]

A former senior US national security official said no meaningful new developments on North Korea are expected to emerge from the summit between President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, scheduled to be held at the White House on Sept. 24.

The former official made the assessment Wednesday (local time) at a press briefing in Washington on the upcoming summit. "Both sides will talk about denuclearization, but the reality is that their strategic interests are divided," the official said.

"China will try to pull North Korea closer, which means pulling it a bit further from Russia," the official said. "China wants North Korea to maintain the current situation — no extremely provocative behavior — and wants to prevent it from tilting toward the United States."

The official added that Trump wants to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and reach some form of agreement. "That is something China does not support," the official said.

"So I don't expect anything particularly new to come out of the summit on North Korea," the official said.

On the broader agenda for the meeting, the official was equally skeptical. "There has been essentially no substantive preparation, and expectations are surprisingly low," the official said. "There is very little chance of any significant deliverables."

The official assessed that both Trump and Xi are seeking the summit primarily for domestic political purposes.

"Trump has the midterm elections in November, and Xi has the fifth plenary session of the 20th Central Committee in October," the official said. "Both leaders want to be seen meeting each other and managing the most important relationship in international politics."

A think tank official at the same briefing commented on the planned Sunday meeting in New York between US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng to coordinate summit agenda items including trade and AI. "That meeting appears to have originally been conceived as part of a broader AI dialogue, but it now seems to have been somewhat sidelined," the official said.

The think tank official attributed this to uncertainty on both sides about what to put on the table. "I think it's because neither side has figured out exactly what to offer in a meaningful conversation," the official said. "Technology is evolving too fast, and neither side has thought deeply enough about how it affects politics, or how much of an existential threat — or benefit — AI will be to each of their political ecosystems."


mokiya@heraldcorp.com