WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump has signaled the highest level of protocol for Chinese President Xi Jinping, who will make his first state visit to the United States in 11 years. Yet the welcome will carry an unspoken military message, including a flyover by the B-2 stealth bomber that struck Iran's nuclear facilities. Chinese analysts said the two sides will use the summit to manage their rivalry and keep it stable rather than let it escalate into confrontation.
The White House released the three-day, two-night summit schedule on the 21st. Trump will personally greet Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, at Joint Base Andrews near Washington at 4:10 p.m. on the 23rd. A state welcoming ceremony will follow at the White House on the morning of the 24th, attended by Trump and the first lady along with Xi and Peng.
One B-2 stealth bomber and four F-22 Raptors, the most advanced fighter jet in service, will conduct a celebratory flyover. The B-2 is the U.S. military's most advanced airborne asset, flying 18 hours to drop massive bunker-buster bombs during Operation Midnight Hammer, the U.S. strike on Iranian nuclear facilities in June last year.
The two leaders will begin formal talks after the ceremony. Melania Trump and Peng will visit the National Museum of Asian Art at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington during that time. The U.S. first lady rarely appears in public, earning her the nickname "the reclusive first lady," and did not accompany Trump on his trip to China in May. It will be the first meeting between the two women since Trump's state visit to China in November 2017, nine years ago.
A state dinner will be held that evening in the White House banquet hall, with senior political and business figures from both countries expected to attend in large numbers. On the final day, the 25th, Trump and the first lady will have tea with Xi and Peng at the White House in the morning, then travel to the National Archives in Washington to view records documenting the history of U.S.-China relations before parting.
Despite the elaborate reception, the United States pushed back against Beijing over Taiwan at a trilateral foreign ministers' meeting with South Korea and Japan in New York ahead of the summit. In a joint statement, the three ministers said they "encouraged the peaceful resolution of cross-strait issues and opposed any attempt to unilaterally change the status quo," and expressed support for Taiwan's meaningful participation in international organizations.
Some observers expect Xi to press Trump hard to halt arms sales to Taiwan. Reuters reported that Xi may demand an end to U.S. arms sales to Taiwan on the basis of the 1982 U.S.-China joint communique. The argument is that Washington must follow through on its pledge at the time to gradually reduce arms sales to Taiwan and not pursue a long-term arms sales policy. In return, China is expected to signal its willingness to cooperate in pressuring Iran over the war in the Middle East.
Shen Yu-chung, vice chairman of Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council, said Xi "will put pressure on Trump over the Taiwan agenda and the Indo-Pacific agenda at the summit." He added that Xi "will argue that Japan and Taiwan are the real troublemakers destroying the status quo in the Indo-Pacific region."
Meanwhile, West Texas Intermediate crude closed 4.5% lower at $96.78 a barrel on expectations that the U.N. General Assembly, which opens in New York on the 22nd, could open a diplomatic path in the U.S.-Iran war and the Russia-Ukraine war. The supply crunch in refined products persists, however, unlike crude. Diesel prices in the United States hit a record high of $6.51 a gallon.
That is why Trump protested strongly to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a phone call on the 20th, telling him to "stop the attacks on Russian refining facilities." Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, meanwhile, said that day that Iran "will lay out at the U.N. General Assembly the harm done to the Iranian people, the crimes committed [by the United States and Israel], and the distrust that has built up," suggesting dialogue will not come easily.
