Trump Leaves China, Praises Trade Deals but Vague on Taiwan and Iran

President Donald Trump left China after a three-day visit, praising a number of sweeping trade agreements but showing little progress on key issues related to Taiwan or the U.S.-Israel launched war in Iran.

Trump's visit, his first trip of his second term, was filled with pomp and ceremony, including a welcome with waving children and a military honor guard, a private tour of a formerly secret imperial garden, and the 15th-century Confucian Temple of Heaven.

At the conclusion of the visit, both sides described it as a success, even as their accounts of what was agreed diverged.

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump said he and Chinese President Xi Jinping discussed Taiwan, and that the Chinese leader told him he opposes independence for the self-governing island that Beijing claims.

"I listened to him. I made no comments," Trump said. "I made no commitment either way."

Shortly after welcoming Trump on Thursday, Xi called Taiwan "the most important issue in U.S.-China relations." Xi added: "If it is mishandled, the two nations could collide or even clash, pushing the entire U.S.-China relationship into an extremely dangerous situation."

Trump told reporters on Friday that he had not made a decision on weapons sales to Taiwan, an issue with deep support in the U.S. Congress that Beijing vehemently opposes.

The U.S. has no official diplomatic relations with Taiwan, but for years has provided billions of dollars in military aid. The U.S. acknowledges, but does not endorse, Beijing's territorial claim on the island.

U.S. lawmakers have approved a massive new weapons sale to Taipei, which still requires Trump's approval. "I will make a decision," Trump told reporters. "I will make a decision. But, you know, I think the last thing we need right now is a war 9,500 miles away (15,289 km)."

For its part, Taiwan's foreign minister said on Friday that Taipei would seek to tighten relations with the U.S., citing rising regional "risks."

On Iran, Trump said he and Xi spoke at length about the U.S.-Israel launched war, as well as their shared desire to see the Strait of Hormuz reopened. Some Trump administration officials have called on Beijing to use its influence with Tehran to help break an impasse in ceasefire talks, though the president downplayed the issue on the trip.

The White House announced little concrete progress after Trump's departure. Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that he did not "ask for any favors" on Iran. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, speaking to reporters on Friday about Trump's visit, also showed few signs that China's approach to the conflict had changed.

"China encourages the U.S. and Iran to continue resolving their differences and disputes, including the nuclear issue, through negotiations, and supports the swift reopening of the Strait of Hormuz on the basis of maintaining a ceasefire," he said.

On trade, Trump, who was accompanied by a delegation of top U.S. business leaders, ended the visit by touting a series of "great trade deals for both nations." In an interview with Fox News on Friday, he said that included China agreeing to buy 200 aircraft from U.S. aerospace manufacturer Boeing. Such a deal would mark the first purchase of U.S. planes in over a decade. The White House also said China may soon begin buying additional U.S. oil and agricultural products.

However, other details of any agreement were not immediately disclosed, and China was far more circumspect. No new deals were mentioned in China's official statement summarizing the visit. Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Yi said on Friday that both sides agreed to establish a trade council and an investment council. He said they would continue discussions on tariff adjustments and agricultural market access. Meanwhile, Trump gave no update on whether a ceasefire in the trade war reached in October last year, which left Washington's tariffs on China in place and Beijing threatening export controls on rare earth minerals, would be renewed. Trump said he and Xi "did not discuss tariffs."