Xi Jinping goes on first state visit to the US in 11 years

Chinese President Xi Jinping departs on Wednesday for his first state visit to the United States in 11 years amid trade tensions and geopolitical tensions between the two countries, with Beijing calling the exchange of visits by the two leaders within six months a "historic milestone."

Xi Jinping's state visit to the United States will last from September 23 to 25, Beijing time, and US President Donald Trump is expected to personally greet the Chinese leader on the tarmac in a rare gesture on his part.

Xi Jinping's first state visit to the United States took place in September 2015, when the Chinese leader visited Seattle, Washington, and New York, where he took part in a series of events to mark the 70th anniversary of the UN. After that, he visited the States in 2016 to participate in the 4th Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, in 2017 he met with Trump at the Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida, and in 2023, Xi Jinping visited San Francisco to participate in the APEC summit.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun previously said that during the visit, Xi Jinping will discuss with Trump the most important issues related to bilateral relations, as well as global peace and development throughout the world.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, in a conversation with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on the eve of Xi Jinping's visit, noted that recently, Chinese-American relations as a whole have been moving forward along the path of constructive strategic stability, which helps meet the expectations of the international community.

According to him, Beijing and Washington should, guided by the principles of equality, respect and mutual benefit, prepare upcoming high-level contacts, strengthen communication, promote cooperation, control differences, and respect each other's core interests.

Da Wei, director of the Center for International Security and Strategy at Tsinghua University, speaking about expectations from the China-US summit at the Xiangshan Forum in Beijing, noted that the results of the meeting between the leaders of the two countries will be limited. In his opinion, the main reason is that the Trump administration is not very well prepared for a fruitful summit. The Chinese side is much better prepared, “and it takes two to tango,” the expert said.

He noted that following the visit, the parties will likely make a statement on duties, on rare earth metals, perhaps there will be a first round of dialogue on the topic of artificial intelligence, as well as a discussion of foreign direct investment.

The Chinese side did not provide details of the visit program or the agenda of the negotiations, while Reuters, citing informed sources, previously reported that Xi Jinping during the visit will demand that Trump stop supplying arms to Taiwan. According to the agency's sources, the Chinese side may respond by offering assistance in resolving the conflict around Iran.