China’s president to be given state dinner during visit to the US, says White House
President Barack Obama will offer his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping a full state welcome at the White House on September 25, a US spokesman said.
Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama will host Xi and his wife Peng Liyuan, a Chinese folk singing superstar, at an official state dinner on the evening of September 25, said White House spokesman Josh Earnest.
The prestigious welcome comes after Obama made a similar trip to China in November 2014, but it belies deep and growing tensions between the world’s two pre-eminent economic and political powers.
Xi is seen as one of the most powerful Chinese leaders in decades, but his vision of creating a “Chinese dream” and returning the country to great power status has met economic headwinds.
After decades of breakneck growth, the Chinese economy is weakening, creating a worldwide ripple effect, from slower trade volumes to skittishness on global equity and commodity markets.
