Article by Viory
Air Force Briefing
Donald Trump’s epic press briefing with reporters on board Air Force One is shown full and uncut, in footage direct from the plane on Friday – as the US leader returned from this landmark visit to China and talks with XI Jinping.
During the media gaggle, he touched on trade, Iran, Taiwan, the fate of the UK prime minister – and even accused a number of reporters of peddling ‘fake news’ for good measure.
He told them they had agreed a ‘lot of great trade deals’ but had not spoken about the tariffs war, saying it ‘didn’t come up.
He said he and Xi had talked ‘a lot’ about both Iran and Taiwan. Asked if Xi had committed to applying any ‘pressure’ on the Iranians for him, Trump said he ‘didn’t need any favours’. He also said the current ceasefire was done ‘at the request of other nations’, notably Pakistan.
Taiwan And Iran
On Taiwan, he said he hadn’t decided if a multibillion dollar arms deal would now go ahead: “”I’ll make a determination over the next fairly short period of time.”
He also said that Xi had asked him directly if he would ‘defend Taiwan’ if it came to that, and had replied: “I don’t talk about that.”
On the fate of the UK PM – who is under increasing pressure to quit and is expected to face a leadership challenge – he said Keir Starmer was “a nice man, actually” but needed to get tough on ‘immigration and energy’.
Trump slammed a BBC reporter over the row involving a ‘doctored’ clip of the president – for which he’s suing the UK state-funded corporation – and took aim at ‘treasonous’ reporting from another on Iran.
Beijing Visit Highlights
The US president wrapped up his visit to Beijing earlier on Friday. Xi Jinping hosted Trump in Zhongnanhai for a personal head-to-head and garden walk.
Trump was caught on camera asking if other foreign leaders received the same special treatment there – and Xi reportedly replied that it was ‘extremely rare’!
The US leader also told reporters during their Friday bilateral that they had ‘very similar’ views on Iran and ‘want that to end’. He repeated the invitation for Xi to visit him on September 24 this year.
Taiwan Tensions Warning
On Thursday, Trump was treated to the official welcome in Beijing and the two held expanded talks. Xi warned that mishandling Taiwan could push the two countries towards ‘clashes and even conflicts.’ He also cautioned against the ‘Thucydides Trap’. It refers to when a rising power – Athens in ancient Greece- clashes with an established one – Sparta – apparently referencing the rise of China and potentially conflicts with the US.
At the state banquet the Chinese leader called on the US not to ‘mess up’ their relationship. Trump also risked insulting his hosts by telling them ‘American travellers to China helped spread literacy and modern medicine’ – although did thank Xi effusively for the visit.
Article by Viory
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Trump with Xi in Zhongnanhai, looks forward to September 24 ‘reciprocal’ trip
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