U.S. President Donald Trump personally welcomed Chinese President Xi Jinping at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland on Wednesday for the start of a three-day state visit, the Chinese leader’s first trip to Washington in more than a decade.
The arrival ceremony featured a red carpet, American and Chinese flags, a U.S. Air Force band performing the national anthem, ceremonial cannon fire, an honor guard, and a flypast by two U.S. Air Force B-1 bombers.Trump was accompanied by First Lady Melania Trump. Xi arrived with his wife, Peng Liyuan. During the ceremony, as the national anthem played, the two B-1 Lancer bombers flew overhead.
A video of the moment captured Trump saluting and then appearing to wince at the loud noise of the aircraft before looking toward Xi. Xi appeared largely unfazed. The contrasting reactions quickly circulated widely on social media.Online responses varied. Some users questioned why Trump seemed startled by a planned element of the military display.
Others defended the flypast as a demonstration of U.S. military strength.Trump’s decision to greet Xi in person at the military airfield highlighted the importance attached to the visit. The two leaders are expected to hold high-level talks at the White House covering trade and tariffs, technology and artificial intelligence, Taiwan, military relations, and various international conflicts.
Xi’s visit occurs amid ongoing strategic competition between the United States and China, drawing close international attention. While the viral flypast video has dominated social-media discussion, the primary focus remains the bilateral discussions aimed at managing the broader U.S.-China relationship.
The visit marks Xi’s first trip to the United States in nearly three years and comes at a sensitive point in relations between the world’s two largest economies. While expectations for a major breakthrough remain limited, the two sides have agreed to extend their existing trade truce, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said.
Bessent told Fox News’ “Special Report” that the arrangement would remain in place through January 10. The current truce had been due to expire on November 10. The extension provides a temporary reprieve for businesses and financial markets still dealing with the effects of the tariff confrontation. The 2025 trade war pushed tariffs to exceptionally high levels before a temporary accommodation.
Trump personally receives Xi
The two leaders, accompanied by their wives, spoke briefly and posed for photographs as a military band played and cannons fired. A B-1 bomber also flew overhead. According to C-SPAN, the reception was the first time in 11 years that a US president had greeted a foreign leader at Joint Base Andrews.
The previous occasion was in 2015, when then-President Barack Obama received Pope Francis.
“China and the United States should be partners, not rivals,” Xi said in a written statement released by the Chinese embassy in Washington. The statement did not refer to the trade-truce extension.Trade progress comes with major disputes unresolvedThe agreement does not resolve deeper disagreements over China’s rare-earth exports, US chip and technology restrictions, Beijing’s relationship with Iran and US support for Taiwan.Those issues are expected to feature prominently in Thursday’s talks.
Xi is likely to raise Beijing’s claims over Taiwan, while Trump is expected to maintain US export controls. Whether China could help on the Iran conflict, now in its seventh month and affecting energy prices, remains unresolved.Narrower agreements are possible on drug trafficking, military-to-military communication and artificial intelligence. Trump is also expected to seek the release of some Americans detained in China.The leaders approach the summit from different positions.
China’s exports remain strong despite weak domestic consumption and property-sector pressure; Xi has consolidated authority through military corruption probes. The US faces elevated energy prices linked to the Iran conflict. The summit is expected to focus as much on managing tensions as resolving them.
Time is on China’s Side
Edgard Kagan, a former White House official now with the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said both leaders believe time is working in their favour.“The president very much believes that over time the US economy is going to grow, the US will get stronger,” Kagan said. “I think when Xi Jinping sits down with Donald Trump, he very much believes the US is in hurtling decline, and that time is on China’s side.”
Trump and Xi prepare for high-profile summitThe programme includes a state dinner expected to draw tech leaders including Apple CEO Tim Cook, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, underscoring technology’s growing importance amid US chip restrictions and China’s AI ambitions. Trump and Xi are also expected to attend a White House military ceremony and visit the National Archives.Despite disagreements, both governments seek to project greater stability.
The meeting will be tightly choreographed, with separate announcements rather than a joint news conference.For Trump, the summit follows a UN General Assembly visit and comes amid pressure over the Iran conflict ahead of November’s congressional elections. Another meeting could take place later this year at the APEC summit in China or the G20 in the United States.The trade-truce extension offers more time to negotiate, but the broader relationship remains defined by disputes well beyond tariffs.