Xi Jinping arrives in US for first state visit in 11 years, meets Trump
The talks open as the two governments negotiate over trade, rare earths, AI and Taiwan, weeks before US midterm elections.
What we know
- Xi's plane landed at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, shortly before 6:00 p.m. EDT Wednesday, and President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump greeted Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan. [1]
- It is Xi's first state visit to the United States in 11 years and the second Trump-Xi meeting this year, after a May summit in Beijing. [2]
- Trade, rare earths, AI governance and Taiwan are among the expected topics, and Xi is due to sit down with Trump on Thursday. [2]
- Negotiators are still working on a possible extension of a rare earths truce, according to U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer. [2]
- Not yet confirmed: Outcomes of the talks are not known. No details have been announced on who will sit on the trade and investment boards the leaders agreed to create in May. Two unnamed people in the U.S.-China business community told NPR that China is expected to announce purchases of American agricultural products and the U.S. is expected to announce tariff cuts on consumer goods such as footwear and apparel.
Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in the United States on Wednesday for his first state visit in 11 years, according to NPR. President Trump greeted him on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, The Hill reported. Xi's plane landed shortly before 6:00 p.m. EDT. [1][2]
Trump and First Lady Melania Trump greeted Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan. [1]
This is the second meeting between the two leaders this year. At a May summit in Beijing, they agreed to work toward a more stable relationship, NPR reported. China has described the goal as "constructive strategic stability." [2]
NPR said the visit comes just over a month before the U.S. midterm elections. It also comes as preparations begin in Beijing for a Party Congress. [2]
Negotiations are underway on several fronts, according to NPR. Greer said this week that the two sides are still discussing a possible extension of a rare earths truce. NPR reported that mutual distrust ended a Chinese offer to extend the truce through the end of Trump's term in January 2029. [2]
Zhang Yun, a professor of international studies at Nanjing University, told NPR that Taiwan, technology and trade are high on Xi's agenda. Talks on AI safeguards, the wars in Iran and Ukraine, and tensions on the Korean peninsula are also expected. NPR reported that Xi has previously called Taiwan a red line. Experts expect him to press Trump on a $14 billion arms sale to Taiwan that the administration paused this spring. [2]
Xi is scheduled to sit down with Trump on Thursday. [2]