Trump-Xi summit might yield only a brief detente: Analysts

Fundamental differences mean progress will be limited, they say

- Lim Min Zhang China Correspondent

Protesters condemning US President Donald Trump's pressure for increased South Korean investment in the US, in Seoul on Oct 25. Mr Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are set to meet in South Korea on Oct 30. The sides are yet to make significant progress on managing fundamental differences, observers say.

(PHOTO: AFP)

Ahead of a widely expected, high-stakes meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea on Oct 30, the rhetoric from both countries' officials has been upbeat.

On Oct 26, a fifth round of US-China trade talks in Malaysia produced a tentative agreement that covers further deferrals on tariffs, export controls, fentanyl cooperation and Chinese soya bean purchases — irritants that have produced twists and turns in the relationship over the past few months.

In a call with his US counterpart Marco Rubio on Oct 27, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the recent talks have proven that as long as both sides persist in resolving differences through dialogue, "it is possible to stabilise and move the relationship forward".

Yet seasoned observers expect the upcoming summit will yield a short-lived honeymoon at best, with both sides yet to make significant progress on managing more fundamental differences, such as on Taiwan, technology competition and trade imbalances.

Associate Professor Hoo Tiang Boon of Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University, who specialises in Chinese foreign policy, told The Straits Times that reaching a deal at the summit - even a non-substantive one — would serve political purposes for both Mr Trump and Mr Xi.