Trump extends unprecedented invitations to China's Xi and other world leaders for inauguration

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) President-elect Donald Trump has invited Chinese President Xi Jinping and other world leaders to his inauguration next month, an unorthodox move that would integrate America's allies and adversaries into a very American political tradition.

Trump said Thursday during an appearance at the New York Stock Exchange, where he rang the opening bell to kick off the day, that he was considering inviting some people to the inauguration without making reference to particular individuals.

And some people said: Wow, that's a bit risky, isn't it? » Trump said. And I said: Maybe that's the case. Well, see. Well, see what happens. But we like to take few risks.

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His comments came shortly after his new White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, confirmed during a Thursday morning appearance on Fox & Friends that Trump had invited Xi and other world leaders to attend his inauguration. No head of state has yet made an official visit to the United States for the inauguration, according to State Department historical records.

These unprecedented invitations come at a time when much of the world is preparing for what comes next when Trump and his “America First” worldview return to the White House.

The president-elect has pledged to impose massive tariffs against the United States' main economic competitor, China, as well as its neighbors, Canada and Mexico, unless those countries do more to reduce tariffs. illegal immigration and the flow of illegal drugs such as fentanyl into the United States. .

Trump also pledged to act quickly to end Russia's nearly three-year war in Ukraine and to put pressure on NATO allies, who spend less than 2% of their GDP on defense , to intensify their efforts, otherwise the United States will not come to their defense, as required by law. the transatlantic alliance treaty, if they were attacked.

“We've talked and discussed some things with President Xi, and some things, with other world leaders, and I think we're going to be very successful in all areas,” Trump said. We have been mistreated as a country. We've been badly mistreated economically, I think, and even militarily, you know, we invested all the money, they invested nothing, and then they mistreat us economically. And we simply cannot let that happen.

Xi will likely view the invitation as too risky to accept, and Trump's gesture may have little impact on the increasingly competitive ties between the two countries as the White House changes hands, experts say.

Danny Russell, vice president for international security and diplomacy at the Asia Society Policy Institute, said Xi would not allow himself to be reduced to the status of a mere guest celebrating the triumph of a foreign leader, the U.S. president, nothing less.

Still, Leavitt saw it as a plus.

This is an example of how President Trump is creating an open dialogue with leaders of countries that are not only our allies, but also our adversaries and competitors, she said on “Fox & Friends.” We saw it during his first term. He received a lot of criticism for this, but it led to world peace. He is willing to talk to anyone and he will always put America's interests first.

Asked at a Chinese Foreign Ministry briefing Thursday about Trump's invitation, spokesman Mao Ning responded: “I have nothing to share at this time.”

Leavitt did not specify which leaders other than Xi were invited.

But Trump's decision to invite Xi, in particular, fits with his belief that foreign policy, like trade negotiations, must be conducted with carrots and sticks to bring America's opponents closer to conditions favored by its administration.

Jim Bendat, historian and author of Democracys Big Day: The Inauguration of Our President, said he was not aware of a previous U.S. inauguration attended by a foreign head of state.

It's not necessarily a bad thing to invite foreign leaders to attend, Bendat said. But it would certainly make more sense to invite an ally before an adversary.

Edward Frantz, a presidential historian at the University of Indianapolis, said the invitation helps Trump burnish his image as a savvy dealmaker and businessman.

I could understand why he might like optics,” Frantz said. But from the perspective of American values, it seems surprisingly cavalier.”

White House officials said it was up to Trump to decide who he would invite to the inauguration.

I would just say that this is without a doubt the most important bilateral relationship that the United States has in the world, said White House national security spokesman John Kirby. It is a relationship fraught with both perils and responsibilities.

It's unclear which leaders, if any, might come forward.

A top aide to Hungarian President Viktor Orban, one of Trump's most vocal supporters on the world stage, said Thursday that Orban was not scheduled to attend the inauguration.

No such project exists, at least for the moment,” said Gergely Gulys, Orban’s chief of staff.

Hungary's nationalist leader is backed by Trump, but he has found himself isolated in Europe as he sought to undermine European Union support for Ukraine and regularly blocked, delayed or watered down the bloc's efforts to provide arms and funding and to sanction Moscow for its invasion. Orban recently met with Trump at Mar-a-Lago.

The heads of mission from each country to the United States will also be invited, according to a Trump inaugural committee official who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity. Such invitations to diplomats stationed in Washington were usual during recent inaugurations.

Xi, during a meeting with President Joe Biden last month in Peru, urged the United States not to start a trade war.

Make the right choice, Xi warned. Continue to explore the right way for two great countries to get along well.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also pushed back against Trump's threats, warning that such tariffs would also be perilous for the U.S. economy.

Trudeau said earlier this week that Americans were starting to wake up to the reality that tariffs on everything coming from Canada would make life much more expensive and said he would fight back if Trump implemented them.

Trump responded by calling Canada a state and Trudeau a governor.

Besides the tariff dispute, U.S.-China relations are strained over other issues, including what U.S. officials see as Beijing's indirect support for Russia's war against Ukraine.

The Biden administration says China has supported Russia by increasing its sales of dual-use components that help keep its military industrial base afloat.

U.S. officials have also expressed frustration that Beijing is not doing more to curb North Korea's support for Russia's war. China accounts for the vast majority of North Korea's trade.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has sent thousands of troops to Russia to help push back Ukrainian forces from the Kursk border region. The North Koreans have also supplied Russia with artillery and other munitions, according to U.S. and South Korean intelligence officials.

Trump's Jan. 20 inauguration is expected to come a day after the U.S. deadline for ByteDance, the Chinese parent company of social media giant TikTok, to sell the social media app or face a ban in the United States.

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Associated Press writers Didi Tang in Washington and Balint Domotor in Budapest, Hungary, contributed to this report.

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