Goal of denuclearized North Korea notably absent from US-China fact sheet

Though Xi and Trump reaffirmed the shared goal in May, no specifics were provided about their discussions of North Korea during their most recent summit

US President Donald Trump greets Chinese President Xi Jinping at the National Archives in Washington, DC, on Sept. 25, 2026. (AFP/Yonhap)

The denuclearization of North Korea, a goal US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping reaffirmed in May, was notably absent from documents released after their White House summit on Thursday.

 While the two leaders appear to have discussed the situation on the Korean Peninsula during their meeting, there have been no reports on whether they discussed restoring communication between the US and North Korea.

 In a fact sheet released Friday, the White House revealed that the two leaders “discussed on-going global concerns, including Russia, North Korea, and Iran.”

 This contrasts with the fact sheet from their meeting in May in Beijing, which said Trump and Xi had “confirmed their shared goal to denuclearize North Korea” during their summit.

 Chinese reports, once again, offered few specifics. China’s state-run Xinhua News Agency reported that the two leaders exchanged opinions on the situation in the Middle East, the crisis in Ukraine, and important global and regional concerns, such as the safety of the Korean Peninsula, but did not elaborate on what was discussed with regard to Korea. 

 However, this was consistent with Chinese reports on the May summit. In its account of that meeting, Xinhua said only that the two leaders discussed the Korean Peninsula, without providing further details.

 North Korea was also not mentioned in the eight “deliverables” the Chinese Foreign Ministry released in a separate document on the same day.

 Attention is now turning to whether North Korea will emerge as a key issue in US-China relations in November, when Trump is scheduled to visit China. Many are also watching to see if Trump’s China visit will lead to in-depth discussions on the resumption of Washington-Pyongyang dialogue.

 In that regard, The Wall Street Journal reported on Aug. 18 that Trump was pressuring his aides to set up a meeting with Kim, hoping to meet his North Korean counterpart as early as this fall.

 The outlet also noted that Trump privately discussed the possibility of in-person talks with Kim during his next trip to Asia.