Donald Trump left China this Friday with the gesture that defines him: his right fist raised to the sky. As he ascended the steps of Air Force One at Beijing Capital International Airport, the U.S. president performed his characteristic salute and waved his hand one last time before embarking on the flight back to Washington, marking the end of a state visit that included a historic summit with Chinese president Xi Jinping.
A brief ceremonial event took place on the airport tarmac before departure. The official White House account described the departure as the conclusion of "a historic summit," while the president's communication team shared images of the moment when Trump, dressed in a dark suit and blue tie, raised his fist from the top of the presidential plane's steps.
The raised fist is one of Donald Trump's most common gestures at public events, but it took on a special symbolic meaning on July 13, 2024, when he made the gesture just moments after surviving an assassination attempt during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. With blood on his face and while being evacuated by the Secret Service, Trump raised his fist in front of the crowd in an image that became iconic for his campaign. Since then, he has repeated the gesture at numerous public appearances, including his departures and arrivals at Air Force One.
The Trump-Xi summit took place from May 13 to May 15 and marked the first visit by a sitting U.S. president to China in nearly nine years, and Trump's first visit since November 2017. The main day of the visit, held on Wednesday, included a welcome ceremony with a 21-gun salute at the Great Hall of the People, a bilateral meeting lasting approximately two hours, and a state banquet hosted by Xi.
Trump also visited the Temple of Heaven, becoming the second U.S. president to do so, after Gerald Ford in 1975. He traveled accompanied by Secretary of State Marco Rubio —who had been sanctioned by China— and a delegation of about 30 senior executives from American companies.
Upon leaving, Trump declared that he had closed "fantastic trade deals", among which was mentioned China's commitment to order 200 Boeing airplanes. Regarding Iran, he stated that both leaders agreed the conflict should end and that Tehran should not acquire a nuclear weapon.
The summit aimed to solidify the trade truce agreed upon in Busan, South Korea, in October 2025, which suspended tariffs that had reached 145% from Washington and 125% from Beijing. However, Wall Street analysts noted that the meeting did not yield concrete results, while Beijing referred to "a series of new common understandings" without specifying them.
Trump also formally invited Xi Jinping to visit the United States during the meeting. On Truth Social, the president had posted the day before his aspiration for the bilateral relationship to be "stronger and better than ever," thus concluding a visit that he himself described as "probably the greatest summit in history."
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