Generally, after a summit meeting of two great powers, a joint communique is issued, outlining areas of agreement. No such communique was issued after the May meeting between Presidents Xi and Trump. Instead, two separate summaries (called readouts) were published.
It appears as if Xi and Trump were at different meetings. The US said that China and the US had agreed that the Strait of Hormuz must remain open with no tolls, that China would reduce its dependence of Iranian oil, and that Iran must not be allowed to have a nuclear weapon. The Chinese readout simply said that “the two sides discussed the Middle East conflict” without offering any further details — no mention of the Strait, no mention of tolls, no mention of Iran’s nuclear program, and no acknowledgment of any agreed position on any of those issues.
The US readout noted an agreement on fentanyl whereas the Chinese readout made no mention of fentanyl; the US said the Chinese had agreed to increase purchases of US agriculture, whereas the Chinese readout simply mentioned that trade was “mutually beneficial”; finally, the White House readout did not mention Taiwan at all, while China centered its entire readout on Xi’s Taiwan warning.
The Chinese also made sure that Trump’s seat was lower than Trump’s and ensured that Trump would be forced to stop and catch his breath while the two leaders walked up the steps to the Great Hall of the People.
Real
Needless to say, the Taiwanese, the Japanese, and the South Koreans were completely dismayed by Trump’s unwillingness to discuss Taiwan. Not a good step in terms of buttressing alliance cohesion.
Satire
World Politics News 
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