Senate postpones confirmation hearing for Trump surgeon general pick after Casey Means goes into labor – US politics live

2.50pm GMT The mystery of how quotes wrongly attributed to the former New York mayor, Bill de Blasio, ended up in the Times – historically renowned as Britain’s “newspaper of record” – has been cleared up. The reporter concerned quoted, not a de Blasio impersonator, as originally reported, but another man called Bill DeBlasio, who decided to have fun at the paper’s expense by answering questions about the Democrats’ currently mayoral candidate, Zohran Mamdani, in an email exchange without disclosing that he was not, in fact, the ex-mayor. Semafor revealed that the Mamdani critic was not an impostor as such but a 59-year-old win importer from Long Island who had been emailed by the reporter, Bevan Hurley, seeking his views on the candidate, in the mistaken assumption that he was the former office holder. Rather than correct the journalist, DeBlasio decided to play along, composing a response using ChatGPT to criticise Mamdani’s tax plans. “It was all in good fun. I never thought it would make it to print,” DeBlasio told Semafor. He assumed the reporter would “have all his people check it out.” It was far from the first time DeBlasio had been mistaken for his more famous namesake. The two met at a 2016 New York Mets play off, with the then mayor – who spells his surname name with a lower case d and has a space between its two parts – asking the wine importer: “How bad is it having the same last name as me?” The wine importer responded: “Dude, you’re killing me.” The Times has removed the report from its website and apologized. 2.40pm GMT At the COP30 UN climate talks in Brazil next month, leaders must be willing to stand up to the fossil fuel industry, said Rhode Island senator Sheldon Whitehouse. “This is a story that has villains in it,” he told reporters on a webinar early Thursday. The fossil fuel industry created a “whole armada of fake front groups” to protect its interests and spread doubt about the climate crisis — despite early knowledge that their products warm the planet, he said. “To refuse to talk about that ignores both a very important and probably the most interesting part of the story,” said Whitehouse. Without this influence, the world may have acted on the climate much earlier, Rachel Cleetus, senior policy director of the science and climate advocacy group Union of Concerned Scientists told reporters. “Fossil fuel companies have been lying and obstructing progress on climate action. That’s why we’re here,” she said. 1.55pm GMT Who is Casey Means? Means qualified as a doctor at Stanford University medical school but dropped out of her surgical residency program at Oregon health and science university in 2018. She later said that she had left because of her belief that the health care system was broken and exploitative. Means subsequently turned to alternative medicine to tackle what she called metabolic dysfunction caused, she believed, by poor nutrition and the spread of ultra-processed foods. AP reported that she has made hundreds of thousands of dollars promoting health and wellness products. The outlet found that she had failed to disclose that she could personally profit from their sale while promoting them. The surgeon general’s position is highly sensitive, placing the nominee in the role of “the nation’s doctor,” who leads health officials and the general population on public health issues. Means, who has no previous experience in government, would oversee 6,000 public health corps members and could issue advisories on public health threats. Her authority in such a strategic position could be undermined by the fact that her licence to practice medicine is currently inactive. Trump nominated Means for the position after withdrawing his first nominee, Janette Nesheiwat, following criticism of her from his fellow Republicans. Updated at 1.58pm GMT 1.51pm GMT The imminent birth of Means’ child introduces an element of harmony into an otherwise fractious nomination that has been fiercely criticized by public health campaigners. “Everyone’s happy for Dr. Means and her family,” said Emily Hilliard, deputy press secretary for the Health and Human Services Department. “This is one of the few times in life it’s easy to ask to move a Senate hearing.” But before the postponement had been announced, Defend Public Health, a campaign group, urged the Senate to reject her nomination. It issued a press release timed to coincide with the originally scheduled hearing dismissing her as a ““health influencer” without discernible qualifications to be Surgeon General” and accused her of “peddling unproven products and tests sold by companies led by herself and her brother, Calley Means.” In a withering critique, Angela Rasmussen, a virologist and Defend Public Health member, suggested that Means’ ties to Kennedy and support for his unproven health theories was the only reason she had been nominated. “She dropped out of her surgical residency, is not board certified in any specialty, holds an expired medical license, and has no public health background whatsoever outside of promoting scientifically unsupported disease remedies in her newsletter,” Rasmussen said. “Her only apparent qualification for the job of Surgeon General is her willingness to promote RFK Jr.’s disinformation and quackery.” Updated at 1.57pm GMT 1.35pm GMT In climate news, ahead of major United Nations climate talks set to start in Brazil next week, former Environmental Protection Agency head Gina McCarthy said US cities and states are keeping the climate fight alive despite an all-out assault on environmental policy from the Trump administration. “We will not allow our country to become numb or debilitated by those who are standing in the way of progress,” she said on a press call Thursday morning. McCarthy co-chairs America Is All In, a coalition of climate-concerned states and cities in the US. The group will send a delegation of over 100 subnational leaders from the US to the UN climate talks known as COP30 next month, as well as to the UN Local Leaders Forum set to take place in the days before. That will include including governors and senior officials from six states, over 35 US mayors, and over 50 city officials and international climate experts, she said. This week, America is All In and Center for Global Sustainability at the University of Maryland released a study showing that with aggressive action from cities and states, significant cuts to greenhouse gas emissions are still achievable by 2035. “There are especially large opportunities for states and cities to go further and faster in the power and transport sectors, as well as in reducing methane,” said Nate Hultman, former distinguished senior advisor for climate ambition at the State Department and founding director of the Center for Global Sustainability. Trump is clamping down on state and local climate action, trying to block policies in court and working to eliminate incentives for clean energy. But Rhode Island Senator Sheldon Whitehouse said climate leaders should resist those attacks, and sue the administration over potentially illegal obstruction. “I think if you allow yourself to be intimidated by this administration, they will seize all the ground that you’ve seen them and then come back for more,” Whitehouse told reporters. Updated at 1.57pm GMT 12.52pm GMT Senate postpones Casey Means confirmation hearing after she goes into labor The Senate has postponed its confirmation hearing for Donald Trump’s nominee for surgeon general, Casey Means, after she went into labor with her first child, CNN reported, citing a Senate committee spokesperson. Means was due to be the first nominee ever to appear by video link before the health, education, labor and pension committee due to her pregnancy. The hearing is understood to have been scheduled two days after her due date for giving birth. Means, the author of a bestselling book, Good Energy, has become a public symbol of the make America healthy again movement championed by Robert F Kennedy Jr, the health and social services secretary, by promoting holistic health based on natural foods, exercise and avoiding pharmaceutical prescription drugs for chronic ailments. Updated at 1.57pm GMT 12.35pm GMT The Guardian’s Patrick Wintour has analyzed the South Korea meeting between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping. He writes: When Donald Trump launched his trade war against China in April, threatening tariffs as high as 145%, the Chinese government said it would never bow to blackmail and vowed to “fight to the end”. The question now is whether the consensus reached between Trump and Xi Jinping in Busan, South Korea, on Thursday means that the fight really has come to an end, and if so on whose terms. Related: Trump-Xi meeting shows price of confrontation was too high for both sides Updated at 12.36pm GMT 12.00pm GMT In the same Fox Business Network interview, US Treasury secretary Scott Bessent said China had agreed to buy 12m metric tons of American soya beans during the current season through January and has committed to buying 25m tons annually for the next three years as part of a larger trade agreement with Beijing. Bessent told Fox Business Network’s Mornings with Maria programme that other countries in Southeast Asia have agreed to buy another 19m tons of US soya beans, but did not specify a timeframe for those purchases. “So our great soybean farmers, who the Chinese used as political pawns, that’s off the table, and they should prosper in the years to come,” Bessent said. 11.47am GMT China-US trade deal could be signed next week, US Treasury's Bessent says The US and China could sign a trade agreement as soon as next week, US Treasury secretary Scott Bessent said on Thursday after President Donald Trump’s meeting with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping. “The Kuala Lumpur agreement was finished in the middle of the night last night, so I expect we will exchange signatures possibly as soon as next week,” Bessent said in an interview on Fox Business Network. 11.32am GMT US to halt entity restrictions for one year after Trump-Xi meeting, Bessent says US Treasury secretary Scott Bessent on Thursday said that the US would enact a one-year suspension of Entity List restrictions that make it harder for Chinese firms to use affiliates to buy off-limits technology. The moratorium comes after President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping were able to discuss big picture issues with great respect at their meeting earlier in the day in South Korea, Bessent said in an interview on Fox Business Network. Updated at 11.33am GMT 11.24am GMT Wall Street futures were slightly lower on Thursday as investors assessed the Federal Reserve’s remarks, Big Tech earnings, and a newly announced US-China trade deal, reports Reuters The Fed delivered the expected quarter-point cut on Wednesday, but flagged gaps in official data amid the federal shutdown, which could impact its future decisions. Chair Jerome Powell said policymakers may turn more cautious if jobs and inflation data stay scarce. Powell’s comments prompted traders to unwind some bets on another similar-sized move at the Fed’s December meeting to about 70% from 90% earlier this week. 10.55am GMT Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said on Thursday he was confident that US president Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping had a good conversation during a meeting in South Korea earlier in the day. Huang was speaking as he arrived at a restaurant in Seoul with Samsung Electronics chair Jay Y Lee and Hyundai Motor Group executive chair Euisun Chung, reports Reuters. Huang said he was looking forward to meeting South Korea’s president on Friday and that his company and the country had many announcements to make. 10.43am GMT Kremlin reacts cautiously to Trump's nuclear testing remarks The Kremlin on Thursday reacted cautiously to US president Donald Trump’s remarks about the resumption of nuclear weapons testing, saying that Russia had not tested but that Moscow would follow suit if Washington did. Trump ordered the US military on Thursday to immediately resume testing nuclear weapons after a gap of 33 years, minutes before beginning a meeting with Chinese president Xi Jinping. Trump said that because of “other countries testing programmes” the US would start testing “on an equal basis”. According to Reuters, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters: President Trump mentioned in his statement that other countries are engaged in testing nuclear weapons. Until now, we didn’t know that anyone was testing. Russia, he said, had received no prior notification from the US about a change to Washington’s position on nuclear testing. Asked if the Kremlin felt that a new nuclear arms race had been triggered by Trump’s remarks, Peskov said: “Not really.” Peskov underscored that Russia’s test of the Burevestnik cruise missile on 21 October and the Poseidon nuclear-powered super torpedo on 28 October were most definitely not nuclear weapons tests. Vladimir Putin, who commands the world’s biggest nuclear arsenal, has repeatedly said that if any country tests a nuclear weapon then Russia will do so too. Peskov said: I want to recall President Putin’s statement, which has been repeated many times: if someone departs from the moratorium, Russia will act accordingly. Post-Soviet Russia has never tested a nuclear weapon. The Soviet Union last tested in 1990, the US last tested in 1992 and China in 1996. 10.22am GMT With Donald Trump heading back to the US after striking an agreement with China’s president Xi Jinping, the focus now switches to the EU, with a senior delegation heading to Brussels for crunch talks over the choking off of supplies of rare earths to semiconductors. Related: EU carmakers ‘days away’ from halting work as chip war with China escalates Yesterday, the car industry said it was “days away” from assembly line stoppages after Beijing’s ban on exports of chips from Nexperia in China in a row over the Dutch government’s decision to take control of its Netherland’s operations amid security fears. The EU is now questioning whether its policy, drawn up in 2023, to “derisk” from China rather than “decouple” is working as Beijing’s stranglehold on rare earths and critical raw materials allows it to turn off and on supplies according to its political will. “This is all part of a new strategy where China is repeatedly now taking steps that bring European industry and other industries around the world to the point of choking them off,” Andrew Small, senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund. “It is no longer that Europe is collateral damage, it is China targeting Europe and I think people are beginning to understand that now,” he said. 9.53am GMT Donald Trump has used his Truth Social platform to declare the trade tensions with China are “very close to being resolved” as he urges US farmers to go out and buy “more land and bigger tractors” as Beijing ends its soya bean embargo. The US exports about £18bn worth of soya bean a year, half of which goes to China, but China stopped buying the product leaving Trump contemplating a multi-billion dollar bailout for farmers. Trump said on Truth Social: I had a truly great meeting with President Xi of China. There is enormous respect between our two Countries, and that will only be enhanced with what just took place. We agreed on many things, with others, even of high importance, being very close to resolved. I was extremely honored by the fact that President Xi authorized China to begin the purchase of massive amounts of Soybeans, Sorghum, and other Farm products. Our Farmers will be very happy! In fact, as I said once before during my first Administration, Farmers should immediately go out and buy more land and larger tractors. The deal covers Fentanyl, rare earths and critical minerals such as refined lithium used in electric vehicle car batteries – a sector in which China dominates the world. China has also agreed to liberalise the sale of magnets used in everything from dishwasher doors to car window openings, he said. It will also buy oil and gas from Alaska, Trump added. 9.41am GMT Donald Trump had first laid out his intention to pursue nuclear arms control efforts in February, saying he wanted to begin discussions with both Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping about imposing limits on their arsenals, reports Reuters. Most major nuclear powers except North Korea stopped explosive nuclear testing in the 1990s. North Korea conducted its last nuclear test in 2017. Russia’s last confirmed test was in 1990, followed by the last US test in 1992, and by China’s in 1996. 9.30am GMT The reaction to Donald Trump’s announcement on nuclear testing was swift in the US also. Representative Dina Titus, a Democrat from Nevada, said on X: I’ll be introducing legislation to put a stop to this. Daryl Kimball, director of the Arms Control Association, said it would take the US at least 36 months to resume contained nuclear tests underground at the former test site in Nevada. Kimball said on X: Trump is misinformed and out of touch. The US has no technical, military, or political reason to resume nuclear explosive testing for the first time since 1992. Apart from providing technical data, a US test would be seen in Russia and China as a deliberate assertion of Washington’s strategic power. Russian president Vladimir Putin has repeatedly said that Russia will test if the US does. In August, Trump said he had discussed nuclear arms control with Putin and wanted China to get involved. Beijing responded by saying it was “unreasonable and unrealistic” to ask the country to join in nuclear disarmament negotiations with the two countries, since its arsenal was much smaller. 9.12am GMT Reuters has some reaction to Donald Trump’s post on Truth Social about the US defence department to immediately begin nuclear testing on a par with Russia and China’s testing (see 1.49am GMT) A senior Russian lawmaker said Trump’s decision would herald a new era of unpredictability and open confrontation, state news agency RIA reported, while China’s foreign ministry called for the US to abide by its commitment to a moratorium on nuclear testing and uphold the global strategic balance and stability. It was not immediately clear whether Trump was referring to nuclear-explosive testing, which would be carried out by the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), or flight testing of nuclear-capable missiles. No nuclear power, other than North Korea, has carried out explosive testing in more than 25 years. 8.59am GMT Russian senator Vladimir Dzhabarov said on Thursday that US president Donald Trump should negotiate with Russia, rather than imposing sanctions on it, state news agency RIA cited him as saying. 8.47am GMT US president Donald Trump said on Thursday he has given South Korea approval to build a nuclear-powered submarine, a dramatic move that would admit Seoul to a small club of nations possessing such vessels. The submarine will be built in a Philadelphia shipyard, where South Korean firms have increased investment, Trump wrote on social media. Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform: I have given them approval to build a Nuclear Powered Submarine, rather than the old fashioned, and far less nimble, diesel powered Submarines that they have now. The US president, who met South Korean president Lee Jae Myung and other regional leaders during his visit, also said Seoul had agreed to buy vast quantities of US oil and gas. Trump and Lee finalised details of a fraught trade deal at a summit in South Korea on Wednesday. Lee had also been seeking US permission for South Korea to reprocess nuclear fuel. However, South Korea’s industry ministry said its officials had not been involved in any detailed discussions about building the submarines in Philadelphia. While South Korea has a sophisticated shipbuilding industry, Trump did not spell out where the propulsion technology would come from for a nuclear-powered submarine, which only a handful of countries currently possess. One opposition lawmaker said on Thursday the Philadelphia shipyard does not have facilities to build submarines, reports Reuters. Asked about Trump’s submarine announcement, Hanwha Ocean, which owns the shipyard with another Hanwha affiliate, said it was ready to cooperate with both countries and provide support with advanced technology, but did not mention specifics. Defence minister Ahn Gyu-back told lawmakers that plans called for South Korea to build its own submarins and modular reactors, and receive a supply of enriched uranium fuel from the US. 8.26am GMT Trump says China to begin process of purchasing 'American energy' US president Donald Trump said on Thursday that China agreed to begin the process of purchasing US energy. Trump said in a Truth Social post: China also agreed that they will begin the process of purchasing American Energy. In fact, a very large scale transaction may take place concerning the purchase of Oil and Gas from the Great State of Alaska. Chris Wright, Doug Burgum, and our respective Energy teams will be meeting to see if such an Energy Deal can be worked out. 8.09am GMT Chinese state media reported shortly after the meeting that the US and China had reached a “consensus” on trade, but the language was a little vague. We’ve now had more information which confirms the consensus Xi referred to in the meeting was actually developed by the US and China trade negotiation teams which met last Sunday in Kuala Lumpur. After that meeting we were told they had developed a “framework” for trade deals, including the forthcoming sale of TikTok. A short time ago, China’s commerce ministry told reporters that consensus included: The US will remove the 10% fentanyl tariff on goods from mainland China, Hong Kong and Macao, and will extend its suspension of a 24% equitable tariff for another year. In return China will “adjust its countermeasures against the aforementioned US tariffs accordingly”. Both sides also agreed to extend certain tariff exclusions. The US will suspend its 50% penetration rule on export controls, and in return China will suspend its own export control measures - understood to be its ban on sales of rare earths to foreign countries for suspected dual-use purposes. The US will suspend for one year its Section 301 (harmful trade practises) investigations against China’s maritime, logistics, and shipbuilding industries for one year. In return China will suspend its related countermeasures. The ministry said the two sides also reached agreement on issues including fentanyl control, the expansion of agricultural trade, and “handling individual cases involving relevant companies”, which could refer to trade blacklists or investigations against US or American firms based in the other country. “Both sides further affirmed the outcomes of the Madrid trade consultations, with the US side making positive commitments in areas such as investment, and China agreeing to work with the US to properly resolve issues related to TikTok.” Additional research by Lillian Yang Updated at 8.11am GMT 8.02am GMT China’s defence ministry has said Beijing maintains an open attitude towards developing military relations with the US. Zhang Xiaogang, a spokesperson for the defence ministry, told a press briefing that China hopes the US will work with them to jointly build equal, just, peaceful and stable military ties. 7.45am GMT Oil prices have fallen slightly as investors digest the new trade deal between Trump and Xi. The two world leaders met in South Korea this morning, with Trump agreeing to reduce tariffs on China from 57% to 47% in a one-year deal, in exchange for Beijing resuming purchases of US soybeans, the continuation of rare earth exports and a crackdown on the trade of fentanyl. Brent crude futures dropped by 0.31% to $64.72 a barrel this morning, while US West Texas Intermediate crude futures dropped by 0.33% to $60.28. The drops suggest that some investors are sceptical that the new agreement marks an end to the trade war. But president Trump has said his discussions with Xi were “fantastic”, and emphasised their “great relationship”. You can follow more market reaction to the meeting in our business live blog: Related: Oil price slips after Trump-Xi meeting, Shell’s $5.4bn profit beats expectations – business live Updated at 7.46am GMT 7.28am GMT Earlier we reported that Donald Trump said he would visit China next year. A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson has now confirmed that, saying the trip has been scheduled for April. Updated at 7.40am GMT 7.00am GMT Summary of the talks In case you’re just joining us, here’s a rundown on what happened at the high-stakes talks between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping in South Korea. Trump said afterwards that Washington’s dispute with Beijing over the supply of rare earths had been settled, China would resume buying US soybeans and Washington would reduce its tariffs on China. Trump shook hands with Xi after their talks and boarded Air Force One to return to Washington, saying onboard that the meeting had been a “great success”. He told reporters the Chinese leader had agreed to work “very hard” to prevent the production of the synthetic opioid fentanyl – blamed for many American deaths – and in exchange the US would reduce fentanyl-linked tariffs from 20% to 10%, lowering the overall tariff burden from 57% to 47%. Trump also said he would visit China in April and that Xi would come to the US some time afterwards. In key developments: Xi said after the meeting that he and Trump had reached “consensus” on trade issues, Chinese state media reported. Xi said both sides should “finalise follow-up work as soon as possible, maintain and implement the consensus and provide tangible results to set minds at ease about the economies of China, the United States and the world”. Trump said they had agreed to work together on Ukraine, adding that the war “came up very strongly” as an issue. “We talked about it for a long time, and we’re both going to work together to see if we can get something.” Taiwan was not discussed at the meeting, Trump said. Earlier, both leaders ignored a question about the self-governing democracy, amid concern in Taipei that Trump may be willing to make concessions to Xi. Before the meeting at Gimhae airbase in Busan, South Korea – their first face-to-face meeting in six years – Trump and Xi shook hands in front of their countries’ flags and the US president said: “We’re going to have a very successful meeting.” He added: “He’s a tough negotiator – that’s not good,” before patting the Chinese leader on the back. Trump had suggested before the meeting – at which their delegations faced each other across a negotiating table – that it could last three or four hours. The two leaders parted after one hour and 40 minutes. Xi said China and the US should “stay on the right course” and “be partners and friends” and should “work together to accomplish more great and concrete things for the good of our two countries and the whole world”. The optimism in Busan was in stark contrast to the recent exchanges of aggressive rhetoric over trade that had threatened to set the US and Chinese on an economic collision course, with potentially disastrous consequences globally. China’s yuan retreated from a near one-year high against the dollar on Thursday after the meeting met expectations but gave investors few new reasons for trade optimism. Minutes before meeting Xi, Trump said in a social media post that he had ordered the Pentagon to start nuclear weapons testing at the same level of China and Russia. He did not respond to a reporter’s question about the decision as he and Xi began their summit.With Justin McCurry and agencies Updated at 9.47am GMT 6.28am GMT On his Truth Social account before the meeting, Trump had described the Busan catch-up as the “G2”, a nod to the US and China being the world’s biggest economies and a play on the names of other formal multilateral groupings like the G7 and G20. Even though it’s not an official name, “G2” has been welcomed by some Chinese people online. “Clearly, the core of the global order is the US-China relationship”, said one popular post on Weibo. Another said: Americans’ attitudes are shifting quickly; they are gradually adapting to the idea that the US and China are starting to stand on equal footing, and the world is big enough to accommodate a G2. With Lillian Yang 6.26am GMT Xi says 'consensus' reached with Trump on trade – reports Chinese state media is reporting that Xi Jinping says “consensus” was reached with Trump on trade issues. It also said after the leaders’ meeting that they agreed to strengthen cooperation in energy and trade. They also agreed to maintain communications, news agencies cited state media as saying. China’s Xinhua agency quoted Xi as saying: The economic and trade teams of the two countries exchanged in-depth views on important economic and trade issues and reached a consensus on resolving them. Both teams should refine and finalise follow-up work as soon as possible, maintain and implement the consensus and provide tangible results to set minds at ease about the economies of China, the United States and the world. Updated at 6.43am GMT 6.10am GMT More now on rare earths: Donald Trump has said his meeting with Xi Jinping removed the “roadblock” on the crucial minerals, yielding a one-year extendable deal on rare earth supplies. China exercises a virtual monopoly on so-called “rare earth” metals, essential for everything from household appliances to cars, energy and weapons. “All the rare earths has been settled, and that’s for the world,” Trump was reported as saying after the meeting, adding that the deal was for a year and would be re-negotiated annually. During his Asia tour, Trump also signed a deal with Japan securing supplies of critical minerals and rare earths. The US president said: There’s no roadblock at all on rare earths – that will hopefully disappear from our vocabulary for a little while. And for a quick brush-up on the crucial minerals – which are critical for defence, auto and electronic industries and have become a flashpoint in international diplomacy and trade – we have this explainer: Related: What are rare earths and critical minerals – explained in 30 seconds Updated at 6.14am GMT 5.36am GMT Five key takeaways from Trump-Xi meeting Trump has just given a press conference on a very bumpy Air Force One. He’s gone into quite a bit of detail about the meeting’s outcomes, saying it was a 12 out of 10. Trump said the meeting was “amazing”, with “an outstanding group of decisions made”. “We’ve come to a conclusion on many important points,” he said. Noting that we do not yet have anything from the Chinese side on their interpretation of events, here are some key takeaways from what Trump has said: Visits The US president told reporters he would go to China in April and that Xi “will be coming here some time after that. Whether it’s in Florida, Palm Beach or Washington DC”. Rare earths Trump said China has agreed on a one-year deal to supply rare earths, after its shock announcement that it was banning exports if there was any chance of the products having dual use for foreign militaries or some semiconductor sectors. But Trump said Xi said “they’re gonna keep those flowing”. He expected the one-year deal to be extended. Trump said: All of the rare earth has been settled. That roadblock is gone now, there’s no roadblock at all on rare earths. Tariffs Trump said Xi was going to “work very hard to stop the flow” of precursor chemicals that the US said are being used to make fentanyl. The US had put a 20% tariff on Chinese products specifically to pressure Beijing over fentanyl. Today Trump says he’s reduced it to 10%, lowering the overall tariff burden from 57% to 47%. Chips Trump said he and Xi discussed China buying chips from Nvidia, but that US was more of an “arbitrator or referee” between them. When asked if he was going to allow Nvidia’s new Blackwell AI chip to be sold to China, Trump said: “We’re not talking about the Blackwell ... But a lot of chips, you know, a lot of the chips. And that’s good for us”. Ukraine and Taiwan The war in Ukraine, sparked by Russia’s 2022 invasion, “did come up”, Trump said, saying the US and China are going to work together on it to stop people being killed. However, he also said: The two sides are locked in fighting, and sometimes you’ve got to let them fight I guess. Crazy. Taiwan, which China is threatening to annex militarily, “never came up”, Trump said on Air Force One. “That was not discussed actually.” Updated at 5.52am GMT 5.18am GMT One topic that was not discussed in his talks with Xi was Taiwan, Trump said. Earlier, both leaders ignored a question about the self-governing democracy, amid concern in Taipei that Trump may be willing to make concessions to Xi, who has vowed to “reunify” it with the mainland. 5.13am GMT Trump says China to resume buying US soybeans and keep exporting rare earths Donald Trump has said a deal he struck to reduce tariffs on China involves Beijing in return resuming US soybean purchases, keeping rare earths exports flowing and cracking down on the illicit trade of fentanyl. Trump also said after his meeting with Xi Jinping that it had been a “great success” and and he would visit China in April for new talks. The US president repeatedly talked up the prospect of reaching an agreement with Xi since US negotiators on Sunday said they had agreed on a framework with China that would avoid 100% US tariffs on Chinese goods and achieve a deferral of China’s export curbs on rare earths, a sector it dominates. Chinese stocks climbed to a decade high and the yuan currency to a near one-year peak against the dollar as investors hoped for an easing of trade tensions that have upended supply chains and rocked global business confidence. Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One about the leaders’ coming visits: I’ll be going to China in April and he’ll be coming here sometime after that, whether it’s in Florida, Palm Beach or Washington DC. “A lot of things we brought to finalisation” at Thursday’s talks in Busan, Trump added.With agencies Updated at 5.24am GMT 5.01am GMT Continued from last post: Like today with Nvidia’s AI chips, there were also issues around tech and security. In 2019, US companies were banned from selling products to Chinese tech giant Huawei, on national security grounds. Trump said the issue was “mentioned” but deferred proper discussion about lifting the ban. Trump and Xi didn’t talk directly about Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou, who was at the time detained in Canada on a US arrest warrant. Two Canadians – Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor – were simultaneously being detained in China, in what was widely seen as an act of hostage diplomacy. All three were later released in an apparent deal, more than two years later. There’s not yet been full details of how today’s meeting went, but Chinese state media reported earlier: “During the meeting, Trump said that the US and China have reached many consensus and will reach even more, saying: ‘I believe we will build a long-term, good relationship’.” Updated at 5.01am GMT 4.58am GMT Key event The last time Xi and Trump met was in June 2019, during Trump’s first term. Looking back at it feels ... familiar. The meeting was in Osaka, on the sidelines of the G20, and just months after trade talks (during the first Trump-China trade war) had broken down. The US had accused China of reneging on trade promises, and Trump raised tariffs from 10% to 20% on about $200bn of Chinese imports. China had hit back with its own tariffs. Today, a mishmash of overlapping industry and punishment specific tariffs are on average far higher, and the US is threatening 100% tariffs if China doesn’t back down from its ban on some rare earth sales. But in 2019 the meeting appeared to help, with Trump declaring things to be “right back on track”. He praised Xi as a great leader, and Xi noted there had been disagreements but that it was important the relationship remain strong. Both sides said they would not impose further tariffs and that the world’s two biggest economies would restart negotiations on a trade deal. He said China would soon be buying “a tremendous amount of food and agricultural product”, again in parallel with today’s meeting as Trump sought to have China restart its US soybean purchases. Continued next post 4.53am GMT Donald Trump also said aboard Air Force One after the meeting that the US and China would “work together” on the Ukraine war. 4.44am GMT Trump says rare earths issue settled Trump also said the rare earths issue has been settled and there would be no more roadblocks on them. Speaking aboard Air Force One, the US president was also reported as saying it was a one-year agreement that would be extended. Trump also said US tariffs on China would be lowered to 47% from 57%. He said he would be going to China in April and that Xi would come to the US at some stage after that, in comments carried by Reuters. He also said Taiwan didn’t come up during the meeting. Updated at 4.51am GMT 4.39am GMT Donald Trump has been reported as saying that his meeting with Xi Jinping today was amazing and it was agreed that the Chinese leader would work very hard to stop fentanyl. Trump hinted this week he would reduce US tariffs on Chinese goods in exchange for a commitment by Beijing to stem the flow of ingredients needed to make fentanyl, an opioid that is the leading cause of overdose deaths in the US. We’ll bring you more comments from Trump as they come in. Updated at 4.41am GMT 4.22am GMT Away from the Busan talks a lot of attention is also on Donald Trump’s announcement just before the meeting that he has ordered the Pentagon to start nuclear weapons testing at the same level as China and Russia. It came after Russia’s Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that Moscow had successfully tested its Poseidon nuclear-powered super torpedo in defiance of US warnings. As reported earlier, Trump posted on social media less than an hour before meeting Xi that Russia had the second-biggest nuclear arsenal after the US and that China was “a distant third”. The US president’s post said: Because of other countries testing programs, I have instructed the Department of War to start testing our Nuclear Weapons on an equal basis. That process will begin immediately. As our full report on Trump’s threat says, the US last held a full nuclear weapons test in 1992, and China and Russia are not known to have held any such tests since the same era. Trump’s reference to “on an equal basis” left it unclear what weapons testing could take place, or whether he was referring to displays of power similar to those recently conducted by Russia. The full report by Abené Clayton and Pjotr Sauer is here: Related: Trump directs Pentagon to match Russia and China in nuclear weapons testing Updated at 4.29am GMT 4.06am GMT Donald Trump has been seen getting aboard his presidential aircraft Air Force One, without talking to reporters. Neither he nor Xi have made any public comment yet on their meeting. Updated at 4.13am GMT 4.02am GMT Helen Davidson has given us an updated list of who was took part in the talks: Xi Jinping was flanked by his foreign minister Wang Yi and senior advisor Cai Qi (a high-ranking politburo member who is essentially Xi’s chief of staff). Closest to the cameras is vice-minister of foreign affairs Ma Zhaoxu, then He Lifeng, the vice premier of China. At the far end of the table is the chair of China’s main planning agency, Zheng Shanjie, and Wang Wengtao the minister of commerce. On the US side, Trump has brought secretary of state Marco Rubio, treasury secretary Scott Bessent, trade representative Jamieson Greer, commerce secretary Howard Lutnick, US ambassador to China David Purdue and the White House chief of staff Susie Wiles. 3.57am GMT Trump-Xi meeting ends We’re seeing live footage of Trump and Xi leaving the negotiations building after shaking hands. Xi has gotten into a limousine and it is being driven away. The meeting reportedly lasted one hour and 40 minutes. Updated at 4.10am GMT 3.54am GMT Key event Chinese state media is saying the Trump-Xi meeting has finished. Updated at 3.56am GMT 3.43am GMT While the two leaders hold their talks, our correspondent in Busan, Justin McCurry, has pieced together what we have seen so far, following their initial greeting and then the opening exchanges once seated with their delegations. Related: Trump and Xi meet in South Korea for crunch talks on trade 3.26am GMT Chinese shares climbed to a decade high as Trump and Xi began their meeting. Investors appeared heartened by early signs of cooling tensions between the world’s top two economies after recent escalations, while also positioning defensively with a sense of deja vu that the real deal may offer far less to celebrate, Reuters reported. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index reversed early losses, rising as much as 0.2% to 4,025.70 in morning trading, reaching its highest since 2015, driven by hopes for de-escalation in the US-China trade dispute. Banking, insurance and liquor sectors led gains as sentiment remained cautious. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 0.6% after resuming trade following a holiday on Wednesday. 3.13am GMT Taiwan’s foreign minister has said it is “confident” in its relations with the US amid the Trump-Xi talks. Lin Chia-lung – asked by reporters about the meeting and whether Taiwan could come up – said the government was “of course” paying attention to the talks. Taiwan and the US had close cooperation on security and other matters, he said in Taipei. “So we have confidence in Taiwan-US relations and have close communication channels,” Lin added, quoted by Reuters. Taiwan’s democratically elected government rejects Beijing’s claims of sovereignty. Since taking office this year, Trump has vacillated on his position towards Taiwan while pursuing a trade deal with Beijing. The US president says Xi Jinping has told him he will not invade while Trump is in office, but Trump has yet to approve any new US arms sales to Taipei. Updated at 3.18am GMT 2.51am GMT Both leaders have brought a high-level entourage with them for the talks. Xi is flanked by his foreign minister Wang Yi and senior advisor Cai Qi (a high-ranking politburo member who is essentially Xi’s chief of staff). Closest to the cameras is He Lifeng, the vice premier of China. At the far end of the table is the chair of China’s main planning agency, Zheng Shanjie, and vice-minister of foreign affairs Ma Zhaoxu. On the US side, Trump has brought secretary of state Marco Rubio, treasury secretary Scott Bessent, trade representative Jamieson Greer, commerce secretary Howard Lutnick, US ambassador to China David Purdue and the White House chief of staff Susie Wiles. Updated at 2.57am GMT 2.42am GMT The US will make an announcement that will be a “resounding victory” for its farmers after the Trump-Xi meeting, the US Treasury secretary posted on X on Thursday in the lead-up to the talks. Scott Bessent said earlier this month he anticipated China would restart substantial buying of US soybeans. America’s soybean farmers have been stuck in the middle of the trade war between the US and China, the biggest purchaser of American soybean exports, used to feed China’s pigs. Donald Trump’s tariffs prompted the country to exit the soybean market and US midwestern farmers have been waiting on a solution, as you can read in this feature from Rachel Leingang of the Guardian US. It details how no other country comes close to purchasing as many American soybeans as China – last year, it was more than $12bn worth. This year, the country has not purchased a single dollar’s worth, cutting off the country that makes up about half of US soybean exports. While Trump has said he intends some sort of payment to go to soybean farmers hurt by tariffs, an announcement of a specific plan is on hold while the government is shut down. He said in a recent Truth Social post that at his Xi meeting “soybeans will be a major topic of discussion”. Related: US farmers caught in Trump-China trade war – who’ll buy the soybeans? Updated at 3.45am GMT 2.36am GMT Just returning to the leaders’ preliminary remarks at the negotiating table, Xi listed Trump’s foreign policy achievements, including in Gaza and on the Thai-Cambodia border. Xi said China had also been promoting peace talks. China and the US can jointly shoulder our responsibility as major countries and work together to accomplish more great and concrete things for the good of our two countries and the whole world. Trump was asked about nuclear testing – after his announcement earlier today that he had ordered US nuclear testing to begin immediately – but the US president did not take questions. Updated at 2.45am GMT 2.29am GMT Trump and Xi are meeting in a tiny building on the Gimhae air base, in the coastal South Korean city of Busan. The airport is a joint commercial and military facility, and security has been visibly ramped up around it in recent days, ahead of the arrival of Apec dignitaries. Local media has reported high-level activity, including practice runs by police motorcades between the airport and hotels. While also a secure site, the airport seems to have been picked as the best way to fit into both leaders’ schedules. Xi has just arrived for Apec, while Trump is about to fly out. Updated at 3.53am GMT 2.27am GMT As the Trump-Xi meeting gets under way, here are some other images from the morning so far: Updated at 3.46am GMT 2.25am GMT Here are some images of Donald Trump and Xi Jinping’s initial meeting just then before their talks began. Updated at 2.44am GMT 2.18am GMT Xi says China and the US should be 'partners and friends' At the table for the talks Trump said that “Xi is a great leader of a great country, it is an honour to have you with us”. Xi Jinping said it was a great pleasure to see Trump, adding: Given our different national conditions we do not always see eye to eye and it is normal for the two leading economies of the world to have friction now and again. You and I should stay the right course. I always believe China’s development goes hand in hand with your vision to make America great again. China and the US should be partners and friends.” Updated at 2.23am GMT 2.16am GMT Trump said at the table in Busan after sitting down for the talks with Xi that “we’ve already agreed to a lot of things”. He praised the Chinese president and said: “I think we’re going to have a fantastic relationship for a long period of time.” Xi said through an interpreter that it “feels very warm to see you again as it’s been many years”. Updated at 2.20am GMT 2.13am GMT Live vision is showing Trump and Xi at a large table for the talks, with their entourages beside them. 2.11am GMT Trump and Xi shake hands Donald Trump and Xi Jinping have greeted each other and shaken hands. Trump said Xi was a “very tough negotiator and that’s not good”. In the comment to reporters in Busan before the meeting got under way, the US president also said: “We have a great relationship.” Asked if he planned to sign a trade deal, Trump said: “Could be.” The Chinese president didn’t make any comments, but said later at the negotiating table that “China and the US should be partners and friends”. Updated at 4.13am GMT 2.08am GMT Live vision from Busan is showing Donald Trump and Xi Jinping shaking hands on a red carpet in front of US and China flags. Updated at 2.09am GMT 1.58am GMT Trump-Xi meeting begins – reports Xi Jinping is now meeting Donald Trump in Busan, Reuters has cited Chinese state media as saying. We’ll bring you confirmation as soon as we get it. As mentioned earlier, it’s the two leaders’ first meeting since 2019 and it comes amid hopes that they can hammer out a trade deal that will bring a truce in the blistering trade war between the world’s two largest economies. Updated at 2.07am GMT 1.54am GMT In the days leading up to the Trump-Xi meeting, American officials signalled that the US president did not intend to make good on a recent threat to impose an additional 100% import tax on Chinese goods. Also that China had shown signs it is willing to relax its export controls on rare earths as well as revive buying soybeans from the US. Trump went further aboard Air Force One on his way to South Korea, telling reporters he may reduce tariffs that he placed on China earlier this year related to its role in making fentanyl, the Associated Press reports. “I expect to be lowering that because I believe that they’re going to help us with the fentanyl situation,” Trump said, later adding: The relationship with China is very good. At a dinner on Wednesday night with other Apec leaders, Trump was caught on a microphone saying the meeting with Xi would be “three, four hours” and he would then go home to Washington. 1.49am GMT Trump orders immediate US nuclear testing Donald Trump says he has told the US defence department to immediately begin nuclear testing on a par with Russia and China’s testing. The US president posted on his Truth Social platform a short while ago in the lead-up to today’s talks with Xi Jinping that the US “has more nuclear weapons than any other country” and claimed he accomplished that during his first term, also saying: Because of the tremendous destructive power, I HATED to do it, but had no choice! Russia is second, and China is a distant third, but will be even within 5 years. Trump’s post also said: Because of other countries testing programs, I have instructed the Department of War to start testing our Nuclear Weapons on an equal basis. That process will begin immediately. Here’s our full report: Related: Trump directs Pentagon to ‘immediately’ start testing US nuclear weapons Updated at 2.00am GMT 1.44am GMT Pictures have dropped of Donald Trump and Xi Jinping’s plane arriving in Busan ahead of their talks. Updated at 1.52am GMT 1.40am GMT Analysis: pressure is building on both leaders Our reporter in Busan, Justin McCurry, has sent this analysis ahead of the Trump-Xi meeting: Donald Trump has racked up several wins during his tour of Asia: including a deal with Japan to secure the mining and processing of rare earths and the conclusion of a trade agreement with South Korea that commits Seoul to significant investments in the US economy. But it is the outcome of his imminent meeting with the Chinese leader, Xi Jinping, that will determine whether his weeklong visit to the region has been a success. Given the high stakes, pressure is building on both leaders to abandon the aggressive rhetoric of recent months and reach a deal that will benefit their interdependent economies and avoid unleashing chaos on the global economy. The mood music in Busan – the venue for their talks on the sidelines of the Apec leaders’ summit that opens in nearby Gyeongju on Friday– was as bright as the sky in the South Korean port city on Thursday morning. Trump has voiced optimism that a deal can be brokered that would ease Chinese restrictions on exports of rare-earth minerals vital to the US economy and see Beijing buy soybeans to help struggling US farmers. In return, Trump would drop threats to impose a 100% additional tariff on Chinese goods. Beijing, meanwhile, is willing to work together for “positive results”, according to foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun. Trump also said this week that he expects to reduce US tariffs on Chinese goods in exchange for a commitment by Beijing to curb the flow of precursor chemicals to make fentanyl, an opioid that has caused an epidemic of overdose deaths among Americans. There are no guarantees, of course, that any trade agreement Trump and Xi reach today will hold for the duration, as their countries compete for economic and geopolitical dominance in what some analysts are calling a new cold war. As Marine One touched down at Busan’s Gimhae international airport, few countries were following the progress of the Trump-Xi talks as keenly as Taiwan, a democratic, self-governing island that Beijing has vowed to “reunify” with the Chinese mainland. Concern is growing in Taiwan that Trump could offer concessions over the island – which the US is compelled to provide with the means to defend itself – despite indications from Trump that he had no plans to raise Taiwan with Xi. Updated at 2.39am GMT 1.36am GMT Xi Jinping has arrived in Busan, South Korea, ahead of his meeting with Donald Trump, according to Chinese state media. Updated at 2.02am GMT 1.30am GMT What are rare earths and critical minerals? Rare earths are at the centre of several deals cut by Trump on his Asia tour. But what are they? Critical minerals are vital for the global economy and include nickel, manganese and cobalt. Rare earths are a specific, highly useful category of critical minerals that are used to make magnets essential for the auto, electronic and defence industries, as well as in renewable energy. Securing reserves and production of rare earths has become a flashpoint in global diplomacy and trade. Related: What are rare earths and critical minerals – explained in 30 seconds 1.21am GMT Here are some of the latest images coming in from Busan amid the countdown to Donald Trump’s meeting with Xi Jinping Updated at 1.25am GMT 1.18am GMT What is in the ‘framework’ deal already agreed? On Monday the US and China agreed on a framework for a trade deal ahead of the Trump-Xi meeting. Treasury secretary Scott Bessent said the agreement – forged on the sidelines of the Association of south-east Asian Nations (Asean) summit in Malaysia on Sunday – would remove the threat of the imposition of 100% tariffs on Chinese imports starting on 1 November and include “a final deal” on the sale of TikTok in the US. Bessent said China said it would “delay” the export controls on minerals used in fighter jets, smartphones and electric vehicles for a year as part of the truce. China’s top trade negotiator, Li Chenggang, said both sides had reached a “preliminary consensus” and would next go through their respective internal approval processes. Related: US and China agree ‘framework’ for trade deal ahead of Xi-Trump meeting 1.09am GMT What is on the agenda for Trump-Xi meeting? Today’s talks will centre on tariffs as Donald Trump seeks to end the bruising trade war with Beijing, while Taiwan and Russia are also likely to be discussed. “We have a lot to talk about with President Xi, and he has a lot to talk about with us,” Trump told reporters as he embarked on the trip. “I think we’ll have a good meeting.” Here is more detail on what the pair are likely to talk about: Related: Trump and Xi talks: what will be on the agenda when US president meets China’s leader? 1.00am GMT Welcome summary Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the first meeting between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping since 2019. The meeting comes amid hopes that the leaders of the US and China could hammer out a trade deal that would bring a truce in the blistering trade war between the world’s two largest economies which has roiled global markets and sent international supply chains into panic. Negotiators from Beijing and Washington have both confirmed a “framework” has been agreed. It is now down to Trump and Xi, who will meet on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit in South Korean today, to sign off on it. The meeting is set to begin at 11am local time – in one hour – in Busan, a port city about 76km (47 miles) south of Gyeongju, the Apec summit’s main venue. News reports a few minutes ago said Xi had left Beijing for South Korea, citing Chinese state media. High on the meeting’s agenda will be rare earths. China’s chokehold on the supply of the critical minerals – which are vital for US industries ranging from car making to military equipment – has been a powerful bargaining chip for Beijing. China controls about 70% of the world’s rare earths mining and more than 90% of its processing capacity. This month, Beijing increased its restrictions on the export of rare earths and related technologies, citing national security concerns. Analysts noted that it came soon after the US expanded restrictions on the export of advanced semiconductor technology to China. Also up for discussion will be the Ukraine war and China’s claim on Taiwan, although Trump said on Wednesday: “I don’t know that we’ll even speak about Taiwan.” The meeting comes after Trump visited Malaysia, Japan and South Korea on his Asia tour, striking a series of deals on rare earths. We will be closely following developments in Busan – stay with us. Updated at 1.07am GMT