The paper's pre-summit agenda had Iran in slot one of the American five-item list. The Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning posted the Xinhua readout of the Trump-Xi summit on X within an hour of the meeting wrapping. Its opening line was Taiwan: "the Taiwan question is the most important issue in China-U.S. relations. If it is handled properly, the bilateral relationship will enjoy overall stability. Otherwise, the two countries will have clashes and even conflicts, putting the entire relationship in great jeopardy." [1] The post said Xi also told Trump that "Taiwan independence and cross-Strait peace are as irreconcilable as fire and water." [1]

The White House readout, by contrast, did not mention Taiwan. The U.S. account named five Iran-specific items — Hormuz must remain open, no militarization of the Strait, opposition to any toll, Chinese interest in purchasing more American oil to reduce dependence on the Strait, and the position that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon — and a trade paragraph. [1] NBC's live blog noted the absence in real time. [2] Trump and Xi both ignored shouted questions about whether they had discussed Taiwan. [1]

That is the artifact. Each side's readout leads with what it most wanted to put in writing. Beijing put Taiwan first. Washington put Iran first. The unspoken trade — Iran language acquired by the U.S. in exchange for Taiwan language tolerated by China — is the diplomatic instrument the readouts performed without naming. The U.S. is bound by law to provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself; a $14 billion arms package awaits Trump's approval and was not discussed publicly. [3] Beijing's reciprocal visit by Xi to the U.S. is planned for later this year. The summit's first written joint mention of Iran since the war began is now sitting against the absence of Taiwan in the same paragraph.

-- DAVID CHEN, Beijing