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Trump, Xi arrive at Gimhae ahead of much-anticipated summit

Published: 30 Oct. 2025, 11:31

An Air China flight with Chinese President Xi Jinping on board lands at Gimhae International Airport, as he arrives to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, in Busan, Korea, Oct. 30. [REUTERS/YONHAP]

U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived at Gimhae International Airport on Thursday ahead of a high-stakes summit that could reshape the contours of global trade.

The two leaders are scheduled to hold talks later in the day at Naraemaru, the official protocol facility of the Korean Air Force’s 5th Air Mobility Wing at Gimhae Airport.

Trump landed at approximately 10:15 a.m. on Marine One, the U.S. presidential helicopter. He had departed the Hilton Hotel in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang at around 9:35 a.m. in his armored limousine, named The Beast, and was flown out from a nearby helipad in Bomun Tourist Complex at 9:43 a.m.

Xi arrived at the airport at around 10:25 a.m. aboard his official aircraft, marking his first visit to Korea in over 11 years — his last state visit was in July 2014.

The meeting will be the first between the two leaders in six years and four months, following their last encounter at the G20 summit in Osaka in June 2019.

All eyes are on whether the summit will result in a “big deal” centered on tariffs and rare earth elements. The groundwork has already been laid: following two days of high-level trade talks in Malaysia from Saturday to Sunday, the two sides reached a tentative agreement. Under the deal, Washington would withdraw its planned 100-percent tariffs on Chinese imports set to take effect in November, while Beijing would suspend its rare earth export controls for one year.

Rather than a final resolution, the deal is being viewed as a truce. A formal agreement on this interim framework is widely expected at Thursday’s summit.

During a keynote speech at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation CEO Summit in Gyeongju on Wednesday, Trump struck a conciliatory tone regarding his upcoming meeting with Xi.

“I think we’re going to have a deal. I think it’ll be a good deal for both,” he said. “That’s better than fighting and going through all sorts of problems […] so I’ll be meeting him tomorrow.”

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY CHO MUN-GYU [[email protected]]