Trump and Xi toast the ‘long relationship between China and America’

There’s a photo from Thursday night that’s worth a second look. It’s Trump and Xi, glasses raised, with the Great Hall’s chandeliers doing their usual work in the background. The toasts were warm, almost over-the-top, with Xi praising the "long relationship" between the two countries. You don’t have to squint to see the calculation underneath, though. This is what serious diplomacy looks like when both sides know a trade war hurts more than it helps.

The White House framed the evening as a thaw, and that framing is accurate. But what’s more telling is the tone. There was no lecturing from our side, no grandstanding about human rights or a lecture on the virtues of free markets. Trump treated Xi like a leader of a great power, which he is, and that respect buys something real. The previous administration’s approach, all chin-stroking and red lines, left us with tariffs, canceled deals, and a colder relationship with Beijing. This is a different playbook, and it's one that puts American interests first.

We’re not naive about what Beijing wants. Everyone in the room understands the other’s endgame. But the temperature matters. When the two most powerful people on earth can sit down, toast, and talk trade without the world bracing for a crisis, that is a good week for stability. The details of the deal will be hammered out in the months ahead, but this dinner was about showing the world that the U.S. and China can share a table. For a president who was supposed to stumble into World War III, Thursday looked a lot like statesmanship. It’s a start. And for once, it's a start we can work with.