Trump welcomes Xi to White House for state dinner
President Donald Trump welcomed Chinese President Xi Jinping to the White House for a lavish state dinner Thursday evening attended by top tech and industry leaders, capping a day of both pomp and circumstance and meetings during the high-stakes visit.
Xi and his wife Peng Liyuan were the guests of honor as Trump and first lady Melania Trump hosted the Chinese delegation in the East Room.
In his remarks before the dinner, Trump highlighted the relationship he has with Xi and praised him and Peng as "truly outstanding, amazing people," saying he wanted to return the "same honor" to Xi that he was shown during his visit to Beijing in May.
Guests scheduled to attend the state dinner included tech executives such as Amazon's founder Jeff Bezos, Tesla and SpaceX leader Elon Musk, Meta's Mark Zuckerberg, Sundar Pichai of Google and Michael Dell, the CEO of Dell Technologies, the White House and a source familiar told ABC News.
Also on the guest list were Nvidia's Jensen Huang, OpenAI's Sam Altman, Jane Fraser, the CEO of Citigroup, and Tim Cook, who recently stepped down as the CEO of Apple.
Trump's remarks didn't touch on what he and Xi convened about during their meetings earlier Thursday, and the president did not mention the war in Iran or artificial intelligence.
For his part, Xi touted "sincere exchanges" with Trump, claiming the leaders reached "common understanding on many issues."
Xi also called for cooperation between the two countries, which comes at a time when AI and global conflicts have tested their alliance. Xi said China and the United States "must act as responsible major countries" while they "meet the expectations of our peoples, keep pace with the trend of our times, and explore a new approach for major countries to get along with each other."
During his remarks, the president joked that he "had to" go off script and make a brief aside about the construction of the White House ballroom, and promised that the guests will "be the first people to step foot" on the site in honor of the visit.
On Friday, Xi and his wife are scheduled to join Trump and the first lady for a private tea and a tour of the National Archives to view historical national documents. Xi is expected to depart the U.S. later Friday.
Ahead of the state dinner Thursday, the Chinese leader was welcomed at the White House with a red carpet at the North Portico lined with U.S. service members.
As guests were walking into the dinner, protesters could be heard clearly from where they were stationed at the gates of Lafayette Park outside the White House. Their chants included 'Free Hong Kong, 'Free Tibet,' 'Free all political prisoners,' 'Free Burma,' 'Xi Jinping you're not welcome' and 'Free Jimmy Lai,' among other chants.
The state dinner came after the two leaders met for about 90 minutes behind closed doors earlier Thursday.
The two leaders were expected to discuss a number of issues, including artificial intelligence safety, Taiwan, trade, the Iran war and critical minerals during their bilateral meeting.
Earlier Thursday, Trump greeted Xi at the White House in a ceremony that included a military review in the Rose Garden and a flyover.
Ahead of the private meeting between the two geopolitical rivals, Trump touted the "truly great friendship" between the two leaders, while Xi delivered pointed remarks on trade and AI.
"From the time of my first election in 2016, President Xi and I have forged a friendship, a truly great friendship, actually, built on mutual respect and the vital interests of our people," Trump said from a podium in the Grand Foyer of the White House.
Trump commented on the historic nature of Thursday's state visit, as Xi has not visited the White House in more than a decade. Xi last visited the White House in a 2015 state visit during the Obama administration.
"Melania and I are honored to host you in Washington as President Xi becomes the first ever Chinese leader to make a second formal state visit to America," Trump said.
"During this visit, we will also discuss pressing issues concerning security, technology and super intelligence. The decisions we make in these areas today can promote peace and prosperity for decades and decades to come," Trump said.
Trump also touted the "tremendous strides" the two leaders have made, with the president pointing to continued work on creating "a more balanced trading relationship, including the new market access for American farmers and ranchers."
According to two photographers who were in the Oval Office with Trump and Xi, Trump joked that China has the friendliest press corps. At the time Trump made his joke, reporters from three news outlets that Trump had barred from the White House last week had not been reinstated despite a judge's order to do so.
The president made no explicit mention of Iran during his remarks Thursday morning -- even as China continues to offer support to Iran amid the conflict with the United States.
Speaking after Trump, Xi thanked his U.S. counterpart for the "warm hospitality," and said "there is plenty of room for us to work together," later stressing the importance of healthy competition, according to a consecutive translation of his remarks.
"We do not need to avoid mentioning competition, but our competition should be a healthy one and should be kept within bounds. It should be a race of catching up with one another, not a wrestle in which one either wins or loses," Xi said via translation.
Xi emphasized the importance of ensuring that Chinese companies are being "treated fairly" in the U.S., notable remarks given the tit-for-tat trade war the two countries have engaged in.
"China-U.S. cooperation may not solve every problem in the world, but without our cooperation, it would be hard to solve many of the world's problems. China keeps its door wide open, welcomes American companies wanting to invest and do business there. We hope Chinese companies are treated fairly here in the United States," Xi said.
Xi also directly addressed the issue of AI, saying that both countries have the ability and duty to make sure AI remains under human control.
"Both China and the United States are leading nations in artificial intelligence. We have both the capability and responsibility to develop and manage AI for good, and ensure that the development of AI is always under human control and serves the well-being of the people," Xi said via translation.
Xi also emphasized his eagerness to work with Trump and similarly nodded to their warm relationship.
"China and the United States are different in national conditions, but through candid, in-depth and continued dialogue, our two countries can understand each other better, seek common ground while shelving differences, and build up mutual trust. President Trump and I have respect for each other. We have built personal rapport and stayed in touch," he said.
At the conclusion of his remarks, Xi shared that two giant pandas will be coming to the U.S.-- an announcement that prompted a smile from Trump.
"The giant panda has been an envoy of friendship between the Chinese and Americans. Here, I have a piece of good news. In a few days, two pandas, Ping-Ping and Fu Shuang, will come to their new home in Zoo Atlanta, and meet with the American people," Xi said.
