Lip reader claims Trump made five-word admission after Xi Jinping's three-day US visit

President Donald Trump's public display of unity with Chinese President Xi Jinping may have masked a far tenser reality behind the scenes, according to a lip reader who claims to have caught the president letting his guard down.

Expert lip reader Nicola Hickling told The Mirror US that Trump made the admission while sitting in the back of his car shortly after Xi's three-day trip to Washington came to an end. Despite the pomp and ceremony that had defined the visit, Trump reportedly said, 'We had a few arguments,' a comment Hickling claims paints a very different picture to the one presented on camera.

According to Hickling, Trump didn't stop there.

He allegedly went on to say Xi 'is definitely going to change things. I know that,' before adding that the Chinese leader 'knows there's no deal if he doesn't carry out what was said, but I have faith in him.'

Donald Trump presented Xi Jinping with a bald eagle statue he said was designed with Melania Trump and an American artist. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

The deal in question is thought to be an extension of the trade truce first announced in January. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed the extension, which commits both nations to reducing tariffs and avoiding new trade barriers, during a Fox News Channel appearance as Trump greeted Xi at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland.

"I don't know whether a bigger deal can be done. I don't know whether we will just roll the current deal," Bessent said, noting the new January 10 deadline could give both leaders extra time to address outstanding issues at upcoming summits in China in November and Florida in December.

Trade remains just one flashpoint between the two superpowers, alongside artificial intelligence, the ongoing situation in Iran, and China's ambitions regarding Taiwan.

Xi Jinping and his wife, Madame Peng, were welcomed to Joint Base Andrews in Maryland with full military honours. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

How was Xi Jinping welcomed to Washington?

Xi's visit began with full ceremonial honours, with the Chinese president and his wife, Madame Peng, greeted by the first couple, a red carpet, an armed military squadron, and a band playing the Star-Spangled Banner as a B-1 Lancer flew overhead. The following day, while the first ladies toured museums, Trump and Xi held closed-door talks at the White House, before reconvening that evening for a state dinner attended by several top tech CEOs, even as protesters gathered outside and their chants cut through the ceremonial music.

It was during that dinner that Trump was seen leaning in to whisper something to Xi, a comment that appeared to amuse the Chinese leader, who briefly chuckled before the pair composed themselves for photographs.

Trump also used the occasion to present Xi with a gift, a statue of a bald eagle perched on a branch, which he said had been designed in collaboration with Melania Trump and the artist.

"It's my honor to present President Xi with a gift made by an extraordinary American artist, one of the greatest in the world, and designed in personal collaboration with Melania and myself," Trump said, adding, "The bald eagle is a national symbol of the United States and an embodiment of the free and soaring spirit of America... we hope it will find a nice place, a wonderful place in Beijing."