As Donald Trump prepared to leave Beijing after the two-day Trump-Xi meeting, US staff carried out a strict security measure before boarding Air Force One: nothing provided by the Chinese side was allowed onto the aircraft. White House reporter Emily Goodin, who was traveling with the press pool, wrote on X that a trash bin was placed at the base of the stairs and items handed out during the summit were collected one by one and thrown away.
Credentials, badges, and burner phones were all removed
The discarded items included credentials, delegation badges, and burner phones used by White House staff. Goodin wrote, “Nothing from China is allowed on the plane. We are about to take off back to the US.” The account described a process with no visible exceptions. Short and blunt. The items were cleared before boarding continued.
Standard security practice on visits to China and Russia
According to the source material, this was not an improvised step. It is described as standard procedure for US presidential visits to China and Russia. The White House issues burner phones to accompanying personnel before departure, while personal devices and laptops are barred during the trip. Once the delegation leaves the country, the devices are destroyed or discarded to reduce the risk of hidden surveillance tools, malware, or tracking chips being brought back into the United States.
Summit produced trade commitments but left key tensions intact
The source also said China agreed to order 200 Boeing aircraft and increase purchases of US oil and agricultural products. Both sides also pledged to create a trade committee and extend the tariff truce. At the same time, Taiwan remained a point of tension, with Xi Jinping warning Trump in person that mishandling the issue could lead to conflict. No concrete announcement was reported on AI chip export controls.