News Brief
US President-Elect Donald Trump Invites China's Xi Jinping To Attend His Inauguration Next Month: Report
US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. (Picture via Twitter)
US President-elect Donald Trump has extended an invitation to Chinese President Xi Jinping to attend his inauguration in Washington next month, CBS News reported on Wednesday, citing multiple sources.
Trump reportedly invited Xi in early November, shortly after winning the election.
However, the report said that it was not clear whether Xi has accepted the invitation for Trump's inauguration ceremony scheduled for 20 January.
Besides Xi, Trump's team has raised the possibility of hosting other leaders at the inauguration ceremony in Washington on 20 January.
Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who has a warm relationship with Trump and visited him at Mar-a-Lago this week, is "still considering" whether to attend, the report said, citing a source familiar with Orbán's plans.
Earlier, in an interview with NBC’s Meet the Press, Trump said he and Xi “had communication” as recently as last week.
However, he refrained from disclosing the specifics of the interaction or the topics discussed.
Foreign dignitaries and diplomats often attend US presidential inaugurations; however, the participation of heads of state is uncommon.
Trump’s repeated threats of imposing tariffs exceeding 60 per cent on Chinese imports, combined with his claims of maintaining a strong rapport with Xi, have left analysts uncertain about whether he plans to adopt a hard-line approach towards Beijing or pursue a reset in bilateral ties.
President Joe Biden has not only upheld the tariffs introduced during Trump’s administration but has also expanded them, targeting Chinese-made new energy products like electric vehicles and solar panels to protect US manufacturers from being undercut.
This escalation continued on Wednesday when the US Trade Representative’s office announced a significant increase in import taxes for Chinese solar wafers and polysilicon—key components in solar panels—from 25 per cent to 50 per cent.
Additionally, certain tungsten products essential for electronics and semiconductors will now face a new 25 per cent tariff.
