China

Anonymous sources tell Reuters that the U.S. and China are preparing bilateral AI safety talks for mid-September, with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent expected to lead the American side — though a Treasury spokesperson suggested the meeting may not happen until October, and no final date, venue, or participant list has been confirmed. The reported agenda includes U.S. proposals for AI labs to share information on AI-assisted cyberattacks and plans to raise allegations about Chinese firms distilling proprietary U.S. AI models. This would be the first official bilateral AI dialogue since President Trump's second term began, following an initial intergovernmental session held in Geneva in May 2024.

At their 13th meeting in Vladivostok on September 3, 2026, Chinese Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang and Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov signed a Final Protocol and added six sector-level projects to a joint investment portfolio now totaling 91 initiatives valued at approximately $240 billion. The six new additions span refractory materials, food additives, chemical complexes, and iron ore extraction, though no project names, financing commitments, counterparties, or implementation timelines have been publicly disclosed. More than half of the existing portfolio is reported to be at the implementation stage, but project-by-project milestones and capital drawdown details remain unavailable in the public record.

Senior officials from China and Russia met in Vladivostok on September 4, 2026, signed joint committee minutes, and held an energy business forum attended by roughly 400 to 450 participants, but official and company releases identified no new contracts, capacity figures, financing packages, or currency settlement agreements. Discussions covered existing flows including Power of Siberia at maximum contractual levels, preparatory work on a Far East gas route, and ongoing nuclear cooperation, all of which predate the meeting. Energy resources accounted for approximately 30 percent of bilateral goods turnover in 2025, underscoring that the relationship's scale reflects prior commitments rather than new ones announced at Vladivostok.

A Dongguan Intermediate People's Court preservation order has blocked transfer or pledge of five Chinese subsidiary equity interests linked to Nexperia and ITEC for up to three years, tied to an approximately RMB8 billion lawsuit filed by Wingtech and Yucheng Holdings under China's Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law. The freeze is a provisional measure only — the case has not been heard on its merits — and Nexperia says day-to-day operations are unaffected. The action sits within a broader dispute that has already seen Dutch courts suspend Nexperia's CEO, transfer shareholder voting rights to an independent administrator, and prompt supply-chain warnings from European automakers.