China and the United States have traded warm signals days before a summit. Chinese leader Xi Jinping is due in Washington on 24 September. It will be his first state visit to the US capital since 2015. Just before the trip, US officials handed back 64 items to China. Beijing calls the move proof that the two can work together.
The handover took place in two parts. Fifty eight items were returned at the Chinese embassy in Washington. Another six were given back in New York the following day. Homeland Security Investigations led the first ceremony. The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office led the second.
The items cover a wide span of history and science. They include the torso of a stone Buddha from the Tianlongshan caves in Shanxi. That piece was looted and taken abroad more than a century ago. The batch also holds clay figures and stone carvings. Dinosaur bones, egg fossils and fish fossils came back too.
Rao Quan signed for China at both events. He is a vice minister of culture and tourism. He also heads the national body that looks after relics. Chinese Ambassador Xie Feng was there in Washington. The consul general in New York joined the second event.
Xie said the items carry high value for history and for science. He said the return shows a shared duty to the past. He argued that work built on respect can bring real gains. He framed the handover as a solid result, not a mere gesture. His words were widely covered at home.
The legal basis is a deal first signed in 2009. It covers the illegal flow of Chinese relics into the United States. The deal has been renewed three times since. It sets import limits on items from the Stone Age up to the Tang dynasty. It also covers large statues and wall art at least 250 years old.
The scheme has a long record. Officials say more than 700 items have come back under the deal. This week marked the fifth return led by the Manhattan office. China plans to put the objects on public show. That display will feature earlier finds too.
The timing is no accident. Foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun tied the return to deals struck by the two leaders. Those deals were shaped during the US visit to Beijing in May. At that meeting both sides spoke of steadier ties. The handover is framed as an early result.
The summit itself carries heavy hopes. Xi is due to arrive late on 23 September and leave on the 25th. He is not set to attend the United Nations meeting in New York. His diary in Washington is built around one day of talks. A large group of business chiefs is flying with him.
Trade is likely to lead the agenda. Tariffs, export curbs and supply chains are all live issues. Tech is the other big theme. AI has been flagged as a core topic. Both sides are racing to set the rules for it.
Hopes are being held in check on both sides. Officials have avoided promising a big deal. Analysts call the ties stable but fragile. Small rows can flare fast. Neither side seems to want that before the talks.
Other strains have not gone away. There has been a fresh clash at sea between Chinese and Philippine ships. Both sides have blamed each other. Arms displays in Beijing have drawn notice from foreign experts. Taiwan remains the hardest issue of all.
For Beijing, the handover serves three aims at once. It plays well at home, where the loss of relics is keenly felt. It shows that talks can bring gains. It also sets a warm tone before harder work. Officials have made all three points in public.
The coming week will show how much that goodwill is worth. Both leaders have reasons to seek calm. Both also face pressure not to concede. The meeting is short and the agenda is long. Whatever emerges will shape relations well into next year.
