Xi arrives for state visit amid U.S.-China trade tensions and AI concerns

In his first state visit to the United States in more than a decade, Chinese leader Xi Jinping touched down in Washington on Wednesday evening, where President Trump greeted him at Joint Base Andrews with an elaborate ceremony — a warmer reception than Trump received during his own trip to China in May. A senior administration official said talks would cover artificial intelligence, U. S. export controls on computing chips sold to China, possible tariff cuts and political prisoners. Brookings fellow Kyle Chan said Beijing worries less about chip restrictions as it builds its own AI hardware, and that Chinese officials are more focused on cybersecurity than on the existential-risk fears some American AI leaders have raised, according to PBS NewsHour.

Republican Senator Roger Wicker of Mississippi, who chairs the Armed Services Committee, objected to the pageantry, saying Xi — whom he calls "a brutal dictator" — did not merit such a welcome. A state dinner is planned for Thursday, with Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, Michael Dell, Nvidia's Jensen Huang and OpenAI's Sam Altman among the expected guests. First lady Melania Trump told Fox News the dinner reflects the president's rapport with Xi, calling it only his second state dinner this term.

On the same day, a Washington district judge weighed a lawsuit from CNN, MS NOW and Politico over their expulsion from White House press access.

Summarized by PolitiKool from PBS NewsHour’s reporting. Read the full story at PBS NewsHour →