For Trump and Xi, a warm farewell and unfinished business

President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping closed out Xi's state visit to Washington on Friday with warm, friendly gestures, though the two leaders left with little apparent progress on the issues dividing their countries. The two presidents shared tea together as part of the send-off, and the one concrete outcome to emerge from the visit was an agreement between them to meet twice more before the year is over. Aside from that pledge, no breakthroughs were reported on the broader disagreements between the two governments, leaving the substance of the relationship largely where it stood before the visit began. Even so, the tone of the day remained friendly rather than confrontational, according to The Washington Post.

The farewell also included a stop at the National Archives in Washington, where Trump walked Xi through several of the nation's founding documents, pointing out the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. First lady Melania Trump joined her husband for the visit, and Xi's wife, Peng Liyuan, accompanied him as well. The stop paired ceremonial displays of American history with a diplomatic relationship that, by the visit's end, still carried the same unresolved disputes it had going in, with further talks between the two leaders now expected before the year is out.

Summarized by PolitiKool from The Washington Post’s reporting. Read the full story at The Washington Post →