Beyond the summit: how US-China relations could still unravel
Por Chow Chung-yan — South China Morning Post – News feed
Advertisement US-China relations Opinion China Opinion
Opinion Chow Chung-yan Beyond the summit: how US-China relations could still unravel
High-level optics from Xi’s state visit cannot hide underlying friction – over tech exports, investments and domestic politics – that threatens to pull ties back off track
4 -MIN READ 4 -MIN 1 Listen
Chow Chung-yan Chow Chung-yan began his journalistic career at the South China Morning Post and rose to become editor-in-chief in 2025. Published: 9:00am, 8 Oct 2026 This year’s Chinese National Day reception in Washington felt noticeably jollier than those I have attended in recent years. The mood was more relaxed and Chinese Ambassador Xie Feng’s opening speech was upbeat. He even joked about the panda ambassadors at his own expense. The cheerful tone followed President Xi Jinping’s short but successful state visit to the US, during which his counterpart, President Donald Trump, gave him an unprecedented high-level reception that would have flattered even the most fastidious of guests.
Yet the mood outside the embassy was decidedly different. The opposition Democrats criticised Trump’s cosying up to “communist” China as another example of his misguided foreign policy, a betrayal of American allies and even a sell-out of national interests.
The mainstream media, locked in a feud with Trump over his ban on media access to the White House, either downplayed the visit or focused on its lack of tangible progress. Even the president’s allies admitted in private that the timing “was not right” to expect a major breakthrough. Select Voice Select Speed 0.8x 0.9x 1.0x 1.1x 1.2x 1.5x 1.75x 00:00 00:00 1x AI-generated voice
