White House to roll out the red carpet for historic Xi Jinping visit

US President Donald Trump will host Chinese leader Xi Jinping this week in Washington, with everything from AI to trade and Taiwan on the agenda for the leaders of the global superpowers. Xi is expected to be greeted personally by Trump at Andrews Air Force Base on Wednesday, followed by a White House welcoming ceremony on Thursday featuring a military flyover and nearly 500 military personnel. The trip marks Xi's first visit to the US in over a decade and his third meeting with Trump since the US president began his second term in office. Adding to the high-stakes state visit, a US-China trade agreement reached last year is set to expire in November. The trade truce - reached in October 2025 as Trump and Xi met in South Korea - saw Washington suspend steep tariff increases on Chinese goods while Beijing eased back from restricting rare earth exports critical for manufacturing.