Why did Trump and Xi seal a deal on World War II soldiers’ missing remains?
Por Cao Jiaxuan — South China Morning Post – News feed
Advertisement 2026 Xi-Trump summits China Diplomacy Why did Trump and Xi seal a deal on World War II soldiers’ missing remains?
Reviving the decades-long effort is one of the ‘least controversial’ ways the two nations can cooperate, observers say
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Cao Jiaxuan in Beijing Published: 11:00pm, 30 Sep 2026
A decades-long effort by Beijing and Washington to recover the remains of US servicemen missing in China since World War II has resurfaced in the wake of the summit between the nations’ leaders.
The commitment was included in an eight-point list of outcomes from Chinese President Xi Jinping’s three-day state visit last week, alongside other agreements covering issues including artificial intelligence and trade.
According to a statement issued by China’s foreign ministry after the summit, the two sides agreed that their militaries would “continue to cooperate in searching for the remains of missing US service members in China”.
Why was cooperation over the remains included in the summit outcomes?
During the summit, Xi and US President Donald Trump repeatedly invoked their countries’ alliance during World War II , contrasting with the strategic rivalry that defines much of their relationship today.
Against that backdrop, the continued search for remains provides a practical area in which the two sides can cooperate, observers say.
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