Trump’s China trip restricted to Beijing: Report

ISTANBUL

US President Donald Trump's visit to China later this month will be restricted to the capital Beijing, said a Chinese media report on Monday.

The venue restriction is due to Trump's tight schedule and security concerns, reported the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post, citing sources familiar with the matter.

The White House has said that Trump will travel to China for a three-day visit starting on March 31 – the first visit by a US president to China since 2017.

Washington's "advance parties" arrived in Beijing in "early March" and their preparations for the high-stakes summit have entered the "final stage," the report said.

Earlier media reports claimed Trump visiting more than one city was under consideration.

"Unfortunately, his schedule is very tight. There is no room to squeeze in a visit to a second city," one unnamed source cited by the outlet said.

The source also said that the US-Israeli strikes on Iran are having a "very limited" impact on the summit’s preparation, adding that the two sides acknowledge their ties as "the world’s most consequential bilateral relationship today, and both leaders are keen to meet."

According to a second anonymous source, security is another top concern. "Adding a second destination would likely compromise security and create a logistical nightmare, so both sides agreed that the visit will be in Beijing only."

"There is a chance for Trump to visit Shenzhen during APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation gathering in November), so why hurry?" he said. "Given the situation (in the Middle East), the visit’s security arrangements must be extremely careful but we are very confident that the summit will be a success."