US President Donald Trump and his wife Melania Trump hosted a state dinner at the White House in honor of Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan. The reception took place in the East Room on September 24 and brought together official delegations, representatives of the US administration and some of the most influential figures in the technology business.
Among the guests were Elon Musk of Tesla and SpaceX, Tim Cook of Apple and Jensen Huang of Nvidia. The three sat at the same table with the leaders of the US and China. The list also included Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Google CEO Sundar Pichai, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and executives from major financial companies.
Xi calls for new approach to relations
In his speech, Xi Jinping said that his talks with Trump had given new meaning to the strategic stability relationship between Beijing and Washington. He described the exchange of views with the US president as sincere and in-depth.
“We should coexist peacefully“, said the Chinese leader, emphasizing that competition between the two countries should be healthy and remain within certain limits. Xi also said that China and the United States should seek a new approach to relations between the two great powers and that they can together write a new chapter in the history of bilateral friendship.
Xi Jinping recalled the two countries' common history since World War II. He said the Chinese and American people fought "side by side" against Japanese militaristic aggression more than 80 years ago.
Trade, artificial intelligence and symbolic gestures
The Chinese president described the new trade agreement between Beijing and Washington as good news for the global economy. He said the two countries could also cooperate in the field of artificial intelligence, despite technological rivalry, to limit the misuse of the systems.
During the visit, Trump gave Xi a sculpture depicting a bald eagle, the “Washington Examiner“ reported. The US president also promised to show the Chinese leader and other guests the new White House banquet hall under construction.
The state dinner was prepared with American products and Chinese culinary accents. The menu included sesame-crusted sea bass, vegetables and a dessert with White House honey. Xi's visit is the first state visit by a Chinese president to Washington in more than a decade.
Sources: Reuters, Washington Examiner