Donald Trump and Xi Jinping meet face-to-face for the first time Thursday, opening a new chapter in the world's most consequential relationship amid growing crises over North Korea and trade.

The presidents of the world's two pre-eminent economic and military powers will rendezvous in the south Florida sun at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate for a summit already clouded by geopolitical storms.

North Korea's provocative missile launch Wednesday -- barely 48 hours before the summit starts -- will only accentuate differences over whether to confront or contain that recalcitrant regime.

The Trump White House worries Pyongyang is just months away from marrying nuclear and long-range missile technology and putting the west coast of the United States within striking distance.

During his first meeting with then president Barack Obama in November, Trump was warned he may have to make an early decision on the use of force against North Korea.

The tough-talking new president has repeatedly and very publicly indicated his openness to military action.

Even before news of the latest missile test became public, a senior US official echoed that message, saying "the clock has now run out" on dealing with the North Korean threat and "all options are on the table for us."

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson responded to the missile test with a terse statement, saying: "The United States has spoken enough about North Korea."

But according to the official, Trump is also willing to consider other ways of pressuring the regime, including sanctioning Chinese banks who do business with Pyongyang if Beijing does not move to choke the North's finances.

That could have a chilling effect on global finance, even though diplomats say North Korea is increasingly alive to the risk and has steadily been funneling cash to Singapore and other jurisdictions outside China.

Xi's government -- which is treaty-bound to defend North Korea -- fears US military action would set off a general war on the Korean Peninsula and generate millions of refugees.

And Chinese analysts scoffed at the idea that Trump's tough talk would have any impact on Beijing´s approach to its renegade neighbor.

"China has established principles on the DPRK issue," said Yang Xiyu, researcher at China Institute of International Studies.

"There will definitely be in-depth discussion of the DPRK's denuclearization, but the Chinese side will not change its positions because of anything Trump says."

But behind the tactical differences in how to approach North Korea is a broader strategic struggle -- one that pits an established hegemon against a fast-rising challenger.

Increased tensions in North Korea would almost certainly prompt an larger US military presence in Northeast Asia, encroaching on what China increasingly sees as its sphere of influence.

Beijing has already expressed its displeasure at the deployment of a US anti-missile system in South Korea.

On trade, there may be more room for maneuver.

Experts predict that Xi could come bearing concessions on sectors like steel, or repackage already planned Chinese investments in the United States.

That would offer Trump the prospect of a triumphalist tweet about bringing jobs to the United States and forestall measures to levy heavy tariffs on Chinese exports.

How much tensions are soothed or exacerbated may depend on the chemistry between the two men.

But no one -- not diplomats, not even aides planning the meeting -- are 100 percent sure what will happen when the most powerful Chinese leader in a generation meets a mercurial American president who has been in office fewer than 100 days.

China is hoping that Trump's sun-kissed beach club -- beloved of realtors and Rotarians -- while an unlikely setting for a superpower summit, will help build rapport.

In 2002, George W. Bush hosted Jiang Zemin at his ranch in Crawford, Texas. Obama met Xi at the Sunnylands resort in the California desert.

Trump has delighted in warmly welcoming his guests on his frequent visits to what he calls the "winter White House," shaking hands with them as they enter and doing the rounds of each table at formal daily dinners.

Xi will hope he is greeted by Trump the gracious host rather than the rhetorical bomb thrower who has spoken about China's "rape" of the US economy and predicted a "very difficult" meeting with Xi.</s>The North Korea flag flutters next to concertina wire at the North Korean embassy in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia March 9, 2017. REUTERS/Edgar Su

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump held out the possibility on Sunday of using trade as a lever to secure Chinese cooperation against North Korea and suggested Washington might deal with Pyongyang's nuclear and missile programs on its own if need be.

The comments, in an interview published on Sunday by the Financial Times, appeared designed to pressure Chinese President Xi Jinping ahead of his visit to Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida this week.

"China has great influence over North Korea. And China will either decide to help us with North Korea, or they won’t. And if they do that will be very good for China, and if they don’t it won’t be good for anyone," Trump was quoted as saying, according to an edited transcript published by the newspaper.

Asked what incentive the United States had to offer China, Trump replied: "Trade is the incentive. It is all about trade."

Asked if he would consider a "grand bargain" in which China pressured Pyongyang in return for a guarantee the United States would later remove troops from the Korean peninsula, the newspaper quoted Trump as saying: "Well if China is not going to solve North Korea, we will. That is all I am telling you."

For more news videos visit Yahoo View, available now on iOS and Android.

It is not clear whether Trump's comments will move China, which has taken steps to increase economic pressure on Pyongyang but has long been unwilling to do anything that may destabilize the North and send millions of refugees across their border.

It is also unclear what the United States might do on its own to deflect North Korea from the expansion of its nuclear capabilities and from the development of missiles with ever-longer ranges and the capacity to deliver atomic warheads.

Trump's national security aides have completed a review of U.S. options to try to curb North Korea's nuclear and missile programs that includes economic and military measures but leans more toward sanctions and increased pressure on Beijing to rein in its reclusive neighbor, a U.S. official said.

Although the option of pre-emptive military strikes on North Korea is not off the table, the review prioritizes less-risky steps and "de-emphasizes direct military action," the official added, saying it was not immediately known if the National Security Council recommendations had made their way to Trump.

The White House declined comment on the recommendations.

Trump and Xi are also expected to discuss Chinese ambitions in the South China Sea, through which about $5 trillion in ship-borne trade passes every year, when they meet on Thursday and Friday. China claims most of the resource-rich South China Sea, while Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have claims on the strategic waterway.

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson spoke on Sunday with China's top diplomat, State Councilor Yang Jiechi, about Xi's visit "and other issues of bilateral and regional importance," a State Department official said on condition of anonymity.

China's foreign ministry said in a statement on Monday about the call that Yang had described the meeting between Xi and Trump as being of "great significance" for peace, stability and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region and the world at large.

Tillerson told Yang that the United States would do its utmost to ensure that the meeting had "positive results," the ministry said.

Trump's deputy national security adviser, K.T. McFarland, said there was a "real possibility" North Korea could be capable of hitting the United States with a nuclear-armed missile by the end of Trump's four-year term, the Financial Times reported.

McFarland's estimate appeared more pessimistic than those of many experts.

"The typical estimates are that it will take five years or so," said Siegfried Hecker, a former director of the Los Alamos National Laboratory in the United States and a leading expert on North Korea's nuclear program.

Such estimates are notoriously hard to make both because of the scarcity of intelligence about North Korea and uncertainty about how high a success rate Pyongyang might want for such missiles.

John Schilling, a contributor to the "38 North" North Korea monitoring project, said Pyongyang might have missiles capable of limited strikes on the U.S. mainland by the end of Trump's term, but "it will most likely be a bit later than that."

"I doubt that any missile they could put into service by the end of 2020 will be very reliable, but perhaps it doesn't have to be - one or two successes out of six launches against the U.S. would be a political game-changer to say the least," Schilling said.</s>HELSINKI (Reuters) - China and Finland will increase cooperation under the China-European Union framework, President Xi Jinping said on Wednesday after arriving in Finland for his first visit as head of state.

China's President Xi Jinping and Finland's President Sauli Niinisto shake hands during the signing ceremony at the Presidential Palace in Helsinki, Finland April 5, 2017. Lehtikuva/Vesa Moilanen/via REUTERS

Xi is due to meet U.S. President Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida later this week.

Like China, the Nordics, home to blue chips like Finnish telecom equipment maker Nokia and Swedish truck maker Volvo, stand to lose out if Trump’s pledge to put “America first” increases global protectionism.

For China, the visit to eurozone member Finland is a chance to shore up support in Europe, its biggest trading partner.

European diplomats have said China has launched a charm offensive with the European Union since Trump took office, shifting its stance on trade negotiations and signaling closer cooperation on a range of other issues.

After meeting Finnish President Sauli Niinisto, Xi said China and Finland will “seize the opportunity of Finland’s rotating chairmanship of the Arctic Council to enhance cooperation in Arctic affairs and promote environmental protection and sustainable development of the Arctic.”

The countries also said they would support the launch of a joint feasibility study on an EU-China free trade agreement when conditions were right and step up high-tech trade cooperation.

“China continues to raise its profile as a defender of free trade,” said Jyrki Kallio, researcher at the Finnish Institute of International Affairs.

“Both Finland and China share the same concern about the negative effects on the global economy if Trump’s action ignites a trade war between China and the United States.”

Niinisto said the two heads of state also discussed North Korea, which test-fired a ballistic missile into the sea on Wednesday.</s>US President Donald Trump holds his first meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday facing pressure to deliver trade concessions for some of his most fervent supporters and prevent a crisis with North Korea from spiraling out of control. The leaders of the world’s two biggest economies are to greet each other at the president’s Mar-a-Lago retreat in Palm Beach, Florida, late in the afternoon and dine together with their wives, kicking off a summit that will conclude with a working lunch on Friday.

Trump promised during the 2016 campaign to stop what he called the theft of American jobs by China and rebuild the country’s manufacturing base. Many blue-collar workers helped propel him to his unexpected election victory on Nov. 8 and Trump wants to deliver for them.

The Republican president tweeted last week that the United States could no longer tolerate massive trade deficits and job losses and that his meeting with Xi “will be a very difficult one.”

Trump, a former real estate magnate is still finding his footing in the White House and has yet to spell out a strategy for what his advisers called a trade relationship based on “the principal of reciprocity.”

White House officials have set low expectations for the meeting, saying it will set the foundation for future dealings. U.S. labor leaders say Trump needs to take a direct, unambiguous tone in his talks with Xi.

“President Trump needs to come away from the meeting with concrete deliverables that will restore production and employment here in the U.S. in those sectors that have been ravaged by China’s predatory and protectionist practices,” said Holly Hart, legislative director for the United Steelworkers union.

International Association of Machinists President Robert Martinez said the United States continued to lose manufacturing jobs to the Chinese, saying: “It’s time to bring our jobs home now.” Some Democratic lawmakers were eager to pounce on Trump on trade.

“We are eager to understand your plans to correct our current China trade policies and steer a new course,” said Democratic U.S. Representative Jim McGovern of Massachusetts.

The summit will bring together two leaders who could not seem more different: the often stormy Trump, prone to angry tweets, and Xi, outwardly calm, measured and tightly scripted, with no known social media presence.

What worries the protocol-conscious Chinese more than policy clashes is the risk that the unpredictable Trump could publicly embarrass Xi, after several foreign leaders experienced awkward moments with the new U.S. president.

“Ensuring President Xi does not lose face is a top priority for China,” a Chinese official said.

The most urgent problem facing Trump and Xi is how to persuade nuclear-armed North Korea to halt unpredictable behavior like missile test launches that have heightened tensions in South Korea and Japan.

North Korea is working to develop an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of hitting the United States.

Trump has threatened to use trade to try to force China to exert influence over Pyongyang. Beijing says its influence is limited and that it is doing all it can but that it is up to the United States to find a way back to talks with North Korea.

A senior White House official said North Korea was a test for the US-Chinese relationship. “The clock is very, very quickly running out,” the official said. “All options are on the table for us.”

Trump consulted on Wednesday with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who said he and the president agreed by phone that North Korea’s latest ballistic missile launch was “a dangerous provocation and a serious threat.”

A White House strategy review is focusing on options for pressuring Pyongyang economically and militarily. Among measures under consideration are “secondary sanctions” against Chinese banks and firms that do the most business with Pyongyang.

A long-standing option of pre-emptive strikes remains on the table, but despite the tougher recent U.S. talk, the internal review “de-emphasizes direct military action,” the US official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Analysts believe any military action would likely provoke severe North Korean retaliation and massive casualties in South Korea and Japan and among U.S. troops stationed there.</s>HELSINKI: China’s President Xi Jinping, on the way to his eagerly awaited first encounter with Donald Trump, met his Finnish counterpart in Helsinki Wednesday, saying there was “great potential” for future bilateral trade ties.

The Chinese leader’s first visit to Finland since 1995 marks the Nordic country’s 100th anniversary of independence.

“Over the past 67 years of diplomatic ties, the China-Finland relationship has enjoyed steady and sound growth despite the changing international landscape,” Xi said in a statement late Tuesday after arriving in Helsinki.

China is Finland’s fifth largest trading partner and Xi said he saw “great space and potential for further economic cooperation and trade”.

Ahead of Xi’s and Sauli Niinisto’s official encounter on Wednesday, Finns were hoping Xi would make Finland the next destination for Beijing’s famed “panda diplomacy”.

Finnish and Chinese officials have been in lengthy talks over China leasing a pair of giant pandas to Ahtari zoo in central Finland, where the construction of a new panda cage costing more than eight million euros (over $8.5 million) is well underway.

After Helsinki, Xi was due to continue his journey across the Atlantic to Florida, where trade discussions with US President Trump on Thursday were expected to be tougher than in the friendly Nordic country.

Trump has warned talks with Xi will be “very difficult” and accused China during his campaign of stealing American jobs and industry.

US Commerce Department data showed Tuesday that the US deficit with China gained $1.6 billion to $31.7 billion in February. AFP</s>HELSINKI (AP) - Chinese President Xi Jinping is on a state visit to Finland, a stop-off en route to meet U.S. President Donald Trump.

Welcoming ceremonies for the second-ever visit to Finland by a Chinese leader were hosted Wednesday by Finnish President Sauli Niinisto at the presidential palace in downtown Helsinki.

Xi, accompanied by his wife Peng Liyuan, noted on arrival that Finland opened political ties with China in 1950 and was the first Western country to sign a governmental bilateral trade agreement with Beijing. He also congratulated Finland on its centenary of independence from Russia.

During his two-day visit, XI will also meet Finnish Prime Minister Juha Sipila and Speaker of Parliament Maria Lohela.

On Thursday, Xi heads to Washington for meetings with U.S leaders.</s>HELSINKI: China and Finland will increase cooperation under the China-European Union framework, Chinese President Xi Jinping said in Helsinki on Wednesday during a state visit to Finland.

Xi made the statement after meeting with Finnish President Sauli Niinisto.</s>Chinese President Xi Jinping Positions Himself As The Anti-Trump

NPR's Kelly McEvers talks with John Pomfret, author of The Beautiful Country and the Middle Kingdom: America and China, 1776 to the Present, about the summit between Chinese President Xi Jinping and President Trump and what each country stands to gain.</s>Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived here Tuesday for a state visit to Finland aimed at advancing bilateral ties, increasing political mutual trust and expanding substantial cooperation. During his stay in Helsinki, Xi will hold talks with Finnish President Sauli Niinisto, and meet with Prime Minister Juha Sipila and Speaker of the Finnish Parliament Maria Lohela.

Start the conversation, or Read more at Xinhuanet.</s>HELSINKI: China’s President Xi Jinping, on the way to his eagerly awaited first encounter with Donald Trump, met his Finnish counterpart in Helsinki Wednesday, extending Beijing’s famed “panda diplomacy” to Finland.

The two sides agreed to carry out “cooperative panda research” and “make the pandas messengers of friendship between our two countries,” Xi said at a joint press conference in Helsinki.

The first visit by a Chinese leader to Finland since 1995 marks the 100th anniversary of the Nordic country’s independence and Finns were pleased to learn that a pair of giant pandas were expected in Finland before the end of the year.

Finnish and Chinese officials have been in lengthy talks over China leasing a pair of giant pandas to Ahtari zoo in central Finland, where the construction of a new panda cage costing more than eight million euros (over $8.5 million) is well underway.

“We know that pandas are a national treasure for China and we will honor and value them,” President Sauli Niinisto told Xi.

China is Finland’s fifth largest trading partner and Xi said the two sides would “expand cooperation in such areas as innovation-driven development, green development and coordinated development.”

Xi said China appreciated “Finland’s firm commitment to the one-China policy”, which Niinisto confirmed in his own address to the media.

After Helsinki, Xi was due to continue his journey across the Atlantic to Florida, where US President Trump awaits him on Thursday with a much tougher stance on trade and China’s problematic relationship with Taiwan than the friendly Nordic country had.

Trump had previously infuriated Beijing with suggestions he might break from the US’s long-standing One China Policy, which nominally acknowledges the Asian giant’s claims over Taiwan without recognising them.

In Helsinki, Xi refused to take any questions from the media and did not comment on the upcoming meeting with Trump in his speech.

Trump has warned talks with Xi will be “very difficult” and accused China during his campaign of stealing American jobs and industry.

US Commerce Department data showed Tuesday that the US deficit with China gained $1.6 billion to $31.7 billion in February. AFP
Chinese president Xi Jinping visits Finland on his way to the United States.