Trump welcomes Xi with a red carpet – B-1 bomber flyover sparks ridicule

The US President picked up his Chinese counterpart at the airport with a red carpet and plenty of fanfare. The very fact that Donald Trump personally waited for Xi Jinping on the tarmac was highlighted in the US media in advance as rather unusual. The last time such an honor was given to the then Pope Francis was eleven years ago.

Then there was the rather unusual outfit of the US President, who stood around at Joint Base Andrews in a thick winter coat and gloves. According to US media, it was quite windy at the military airfield in Maryland at the time, but the temperature was a rather mild 18 degrees Celsius. Neither Xi nor his wife Peng Liyuan nor Melania Trump were similarly warmly dressed.

However, the US President made most of the headlines when he visibly winced and grimaced at the noise as US fighter jets flew over them. The overflight was by no means a surprise; it had been announced as a part of the program for days. Meanwhile, Xi kept a straight face. According to media reports, the aircraft were B-1 bombers.

The ridicule didn't take long to arrive - and it came from both sides of the political spectrum. Both the Trump-friendly New York Post and the left-leaning news organization MeidasTouch posted videos. The hard-left Twitch figure Hasan Piker made it clear: “Trump – this is YOUR airshow. How can you be afraid of that?”

The scene is likely to live on as a meme at least in the midterm election campaign.

Tariffs against China will continue to be postponed

Xi will spend three days on a state visit to the United States. In addition to the trade dispute between the two countries, topics are likely to include security when dealing with artificial intelligence. In addition, Trump and Xi will probably also talk about global conflicts such as the Iran War and the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine. Trump wants to put on an extensive program for Xi by Friday, including a military show and a state banquet.