UNITED STATES NEWS

Chinese President Xi Jinping will send a special representative to Trump’s inauguration

Jan 16, 2025, 6:46 PM

Chinese Vice President Han Zheng attend a meeting with Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel...

Chinese Vice President Han Zheng attend a meeting with Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025. (Florence Lo/Pool Photo via AP)
Credit: ASSOCIATED PRESS

(Florence Lo/Pool Photo via AP)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Chinese President Xi Jinping will not attend President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration, but he is sending Vice President Han Zheng as his special representative.

The decision, announced Friday in China by the foreign ministry, came more than a month after Trump extended the unusual invitation to Xi, a break from tradition since no heads of state have previously made an official visit to the U.S. for the inauguration.

“We stand ready to work with the new U.S. government to enhance dialogue and communication, properly manage differences, expand mutually beneficial cooperation, jointly pursue a stable, healthy and sustainable China-U.S. relations and find the right way for the two countries to get along with each other,” the ministry’s spokesperson said when announcing the decision.

Other foreign leaders have spoken about being invited to Trump’s inauguration, including Argentinian President Javier Milei and Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni. The offices of Ecuadorean President Daniel Noboa and Paraguayan President Santiago Peña have also said they were invited and were planning to attend.

Sun Yun, director of the China program at the Washington-based think tank Stimson Center, said the move by Xi means “China is willing to forego protocol and cater to what Trump wants.”

“It indicates that China is willing to talk, negotiate and make efforts to reach deals,” Sun wrote.

The dispatch of Han comes as the U.S.-China rivalry is set to intensify. Several of Trump’s nominees for key Cabinet positions are known China hawks, including Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, who’s nominated as secretary of state. Rubio called China “the most potent, dangerous and near-peer adversary this nation has ever confronted” during his confirmation hearing on Wednesday, when members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee urged Rubio to make countering China a top priority.

Beijing prefers leader-level talks, which it believes could help guide the bilateral relations, while Trump likes to deal with world leaders directly.

As president, Xi has traveled abroad for state visits and summits. But he did not attend the coronation of King Charles III, nor did he go to the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II or the memorial service for Nelson Mandela. Instead, he sent vice presidents. Han was his special representative for King Charles III’s coronation. When Trump invited Xi to the inauguration in December, it was widely believed that Xi was unlikely to come.

___

Associated Press writer Adriana Gomez Licon in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., contributed to this report.

United States News

FILE - Elon Musk speaks at a presidential inauguration event on behalf of President-elect Donald Tr...

Associated Press

The slash-and-burn tactics Musk brings to Washington often backfired at Twitter

When Elon Musk bought Twitter in 2022, he laid off thousands of employees, stopped paying rent and auctioned off coffee makers and office chairs in hopes of a big turnaround. Now the world’s richest man has brought the same slash-and-burn strategy to the federal government, and some people who experienced Musk’s takeover at Twitter have […]

35 seconds ago

FILE - This colorized electron microscope image released by the National Institute of Allergy and I...

Associated Press

New York temporarily shutters bird markets after seven cases of avian flu are detected in NYC

NEW YORK (AP) — New York on Friday ordered a weeklong shutdown of all live bird markets in New York City, Westchester and Long Island after seven cases of avian flu were detected at bird markets in the city. Gov. Kathy Hochul said there is no immediate threat to public health and that the temporary […]

54 minutes ago

Demonstrators and lawmakers rally against President Donald Trump and his ally Elon Musk as they dis...

Associated Press

Forced leaves start for thousands at USAID under a Trump plan to gut the foreign aid agency

WASHINGTON (AP) — Forced leaves began in Washington and worldwide Friday for most employees of the U.S. Agency for International Development, as federal workers associations turned to the courts to try to roll back Trump administration orders that have dismantled most of the agency and U.S.- funded aid programs around the world. Under a Trump […]

2 hours ago

Associated Press

The Latest: US allies in Europe join ICC against Trump’s sanctions over Israel

The International Criminal Court on Friday called on its member states to stand up against sanctions imposed by President Donald Trump, saying that the move was an attempt to “harm its independent and impartial judicial work.” And the embattled court got plenty of support from traditional U.S. allies in Europe who stood up against the […]

2 hours ago

Associated Press

2 dead, 3 injured in weather event with ‘possible tornado,’ officials in Tennessee say

WARTBURG, Tenn. (AP) — Two people were killed in eastern Tennessee when severe storms with a possible tornado moved through the region. Local officials announced Friday morning that a mother and daughter from the same household were killed when the storm passed through the Deer Lodge and Sunbright areas of Morgan County on Thursday night. […]

2 hours ago

Tim Andrews smiles as he leaves Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston on Feb. 1, 2025. (Kate Flo...

Associated Press

New Hampshire man is 2nd person known to be living with a pig kidney

A New Hampshire man fought for the chance at a pig kidney transplant, spending months getting into good enough shape to be part of a small pilot study of a highly experimental treatment. His effort paid off: Tim Andrews, 66, is only the second person known to be living with a pig kidney. Andrews is […]

3 hours ago

Sponsored Articles

...

Bright Wealth Management

How IRAs are a helpful tool in retirement planning

When it comes to retirement planning, individual retirement accounts (IRAs) can be a great tool for income growth.

...

Fiesta Bowl Foundation

Join us for the 52nd annual Vrbo Fiesta Bowl Parade

The 52nd annual Vrbo Fiesta Bowl Parade presented by Lerner & Rowe returns on Saturday, December 28, at 10 a.m.

...

Sanderson Ford

Sanderson Ford’s Operation Santa Claus: Spreading holiday cheer through pickleball

Phoenix, AZ – Sanderson Ford, a staple in the Arizona community, is once again gearing up for its annual Operation Santa Claus charity drive.

Chinese President Xi Jinping will send a special representative to Trump’s inauguration