A Summit Without Substance in Beijing The fanfare surrounding Donald Trump's trip to Beijing has given way to a familiar reality: despite ceremony and grandstanding, substance was scarce.
The "stalemate summit" between Trump and Xi Jinping was touted as a breakthrough moment in US China relations, but upon closer inspection, it appears to be little more than a rehashing of familiar positions with no clear movement towards resolving critical issues.
The crisis in the Middle East loomed large over the talks, and Trump's administration had been sending mixed signals about how much help they were requesting from China to push Iran to the negotiating table.