Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Washington on Wednesday (September 23, 2026), where he was to be met with a rare planeside greeting from U.S. President Donald Trump , who was there to welcome his counterpart on the tarmac instead of waiting for him to drive up to the White House.
Mr. Trump’s decision to greet Mr. Xi at Joint Base Andrews just outside Washington rather than receiving him at the executive residence shows how far the U.S. President is going to honour China’s leader as he made his first state visit to the U.S. capital in more than a decade.
Sen. Roger Wicker, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, criticised the “lavish welcome. Trump should not have invited the Chinese leader “based on all of the troubling issues we have with President Xi and the Chinese Communist Party. Mr. Xi was not at the airport to meet Trump — Chinese Vice President Han Zheng was there instead. But a red carpet was rolled out to meet Air Force One in Beijing. Warm welcome!” were also present. The children wore white and light blue uniforms that mirrored the traditional paint colours of the presidential plane. Ms. Xi and his wife during an interview on Fox News Channel’. Trump and first lady Melania Trump were at the Maryland military base for Xi’s arrival ceremony, along with Xi’s wife Peng Liyuan.
Wicker, R-Miss, said during a speech Tuesday (September 22) in the Senate that Mr. Trump on Wednesday (September 23) was looking to match the pageantry he was met with in China earlier this year. A military honour guard, a military band and about 300 Chinese youths waving Chinese and American flags and chanting, “Welcome, welcome! Trump said earlier Wednesday (September 23) that her husband decided to personally greet Mr. Earlier reporting noted: Trump rolls out the red carpet as China’s Xi Jinping lands in US for 3-day state visit; Video Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Washington on Wednesday for a three-day state visit, with President Donald Trump personally greeting him at Joint Base Andrews.
Because “they have a great relationship, xi when he arrived in the Washington region.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the U.S. and China must interact at the highest levels because the countries are “the two largest economies in the world” and “probably the two most powerful militaries in the world. “He’s coming on our soil, and we need to welcome them with the most respect,” she said of Mr. Trump has spoken positively about his relationship with Xi and has said he wants the Chinese leader to receive a high-level welcome in Washington. During an interview with Fox News Channel’s Fox & Friends, she said, “they have a great relationship.”
Earlier reporting noted: Trump’s decision to meet Xi at the airport comes after the US president received a large welcome during his visit to China in May. Earlier reporting noted: Melania Trump also explained why her husband chose to meet Xi personally.
The U.S. President and first lady Melania Trump were at the base to participate in an arrival ceremony for Mr. Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan. The salutation kicks off a three-day visit that’s expected to be saturated with pomp, even by White House standards. Trump’s May visit to China.
The state visit, complete with a formal state dinner at the White House on Thursday, is supposed to reciprocate the ceremonial grandeur that marked Mr.
