Tea in the Red Room, then a viewing of old paper. That was how Xi Jinping’s two-and-a-half days in Washington were set to end on Friday.
President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump planned to receive Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, for morning tea at the White House. The couples would then drive to the National Archives, where the White House said they would look at “a variety of important records and documents significant to the American and Chinese relationship throughout history.” Trump would say goodbye to Xi there. Fox News described the whole visit as running under a palpable tension.
The choice of venue is hard to read as accidental. The Archives holds the Constitution, the Bill of Rights and the Declaration of Independence, and Washington is placing its dealings with Beijing against that backdrop.
A day of ceremony and talks
Thursday began with a state arrival ceremony: a troop review, both national anthems and a flyover by a B-2 stealth bomber flying with four fighter jets. Xi rarely travels to the West, and the press, foreign and domestic, crowded the grounds for a look at him.
Trump and his officials then held bilateral talks with the Chinese delegation from late morning into the early afternoon. The two leaders also spoke privately in the Oval Office. Before the visit, a White House official told Fox News Digital that Trump would explore a broad deal cutting tariffs on non-strategic goods, that rare-earth exports and possible export controls were on the list, and that Trump would press China to do more about fentanyl precursor chemicals.
Afterward Trump walked Xi to the South Lawn to see Marine One and its new helipad, took him through the White House ballroom, which is still under construction, and showed him the Presidential Walk of Fame outside the West Wing. Trump has put an image of an autopen where Joe Biden’s headshot would go, a jab at Biden’s use of the device. Footage on social media showed both men laughing at it.
Trump called the meeting “great” but offered no detail and took no questions from reporters that day.
Pandas, students and protest
Xi announced that China would send two giant pandas, Ping Ping and Fu Shuang, to Zoo Atlanta under a conservation agreement. He also invited 100,000 young Americans to visit China over the next five years for exchanges and study.
The state dinner began at 8:00 p.m., with Trump toasting peace and prosperity for both nations. The guest list included Cabinet officials and their spouses and a row of business names: Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, Sundar Pichai, Michael Dell, Jensen Huang, Sam Altman, Jane Fraser and Tim Cook. Fox News called the presence of AI executives notable, given the race between the two countries for dominance in the technology.
Outside the gates, protesters against Chinese oppression chanted all day. By evening, cries of “Free Hong Kong,” “Xi Jinping, you’re not welcome” and “freedom for political prisoners” at times drowned out the dinner, Fox News Digital reported.
