US President-elect Donald Trump has invited his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping to attend his inauguration in January, despite his history of hawkish rhetoric and transmission threats.
On Thursday, Trump's incoming press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, confirmed reports of the invitation in an appearance on the conservative TV channel Fox News. She created the invitation as an effort to strengthen ties between the two countries, which had long been seen as rivals.
“This is an example of President Trump creating an open dialogue with the leaders of countries that are not only our friends but also our enemies and competitors,” Leavitt told the Fox & Friends program.
Experts say it would be unprecedented for a Chinese leader to attend a US presidential ceremony, as the frost friendship which has been between the two countries for decades.
“This is diplomatic theater, nothing more. No other heads of state, let alone Xi Jinping, have attended US presidential ceremonies,” Scott Kennedy, a China expert at the Washington Center for Strategic and International Studies, told the group. Reuters news.
Experts say it is unlikely that Xi will accept the invitation. Asked at a briefing about Trump's invitation, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning replied: “I have nothing to share right now.”
But the symbolism behind his appearance at Trump's second inauguration is likely to be difficult.
Danny Russel, vice president for international security and diplomacy at the Asia Society Policy Institute, told The Associated Press that Xi's presence – if accepted – could be interpreted as the Chinese president “signaling the influence of a foreign leader”.
“Can you imagine Xi Jinping sitting outside in Washington, DC, in January at the foot of the podium, surrounded by hawkish members of Congress, looking up at Donald Trump as he delivers his inaugural address ? ” Russel asked.
Xi and Trump have also butted heads in the past. During Trump's first term, from 2017 to 2021, he started a trade war with China that saw both countries impose tariffs on each other's imports.
In 2019, the United Nations Trade and Development organization issued a report warning that the trade war was “hurting both countries economically”. Experts have also warned that the cost of taxes is often passed on to consumers.
Trump also changed a war of words with the Xi government during the COVID-19 pandemic, which he called the “China virus”. He asked China be responsible for its distribution. China, for its part, condemned Trump's accusations as “baseless” and called his rhetoric stigmatized.
A second Trump term could fuel further tensions with China. Already, he has promised to impose an additional 10 percent tax on Chinese goods if more is not done to curb the trade of the synthetic drug fentanyl.
And the incoming administration is stacked with several exceptions foreign policy hawksincluding Secretary of State candidate Marco Rubio, who has accused China practice “theft” and “predatory tactics” to bolster her economy. China controlled Rubio in 2020.
The current administration of US President Joe Biden has also left some taxes from Trump's first term largely in place and adopted aggressive measures expected to influence China's tech sector.
But this week, there was evidence that the US may seek to increase cooperation with China moving forward.
The Biden administration announced that a delegation of senior Treasury officials would travel to Nanjing, China, while other officials would coordinate with their Chinese counterparts at a meeting for the Group of 20 (G20) forum ) in South Africa.
Trump has also expressed his willingness to warm friendships. Speaking from the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday, Trump also said his administration would be engaging in “many conversations with China.”
“We have a good relationship with China. I have an amazing relationship. Now, when the COVID came in, I cut it off. That was a step too far,” he said.
Some hope that the two world powers will find room to cooperate where possible.
“We should choose dialogue over dispute and win-win cooperation over meaningless games,” Xi said in the letter read out at the US-China Business Council gala in Washington, DC, on Wednesday.
