US President-elect Donald Trump has invited Chinese President Xi Jinping to attend his inauguration on January 20. Trump's incoming press secretary, Karoline Leavitt confirmed that Xi had been invited but said that it was to be 'determined' if the United States' most significant economic and military competitor would attend the ceremony.
This comes after Trump threatened to levy massive tariffs on Chinese goods. "This is an example of President Trump creating an open dialogue with leaders of countries that are not just our allies, but our adversaries and our competitors too," Leavitt told Fox News.
It was not immediately clear if the Chinese premiere would attend Trump's inauguration. When asked, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said that she had nothing to share on the matter currently.
Leavitt said that foreign leaders from around the globe have also been invited but the names were not disclosed yet.
"We saw this in the first term. He got a lot of criticism for it, but it led to peace around the world. He is willing to talk to anyone. We will always put America's interest first," he said.
However, the White House preferred not to comment on the merit of the invitation. "It is going to be up to President-elect Trump to decide who's going to sit with him there at that inauguration, who's going to be there," White House National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby said.
Trump had earlier said that on the first day of his office in January, he would impose 25 per cent tariffs on all goods imported from China, Mexico and Canada.
“We've been talking and discussing with President Xi, some things, and others, other world leaders, and I think we're going to do very well all around,” Trump said in a CNBC interview on Thursday.
Xi during a meeting with President Joe Biden last month in Peru urged the United States not to start a trade war. "Make the wise choice," Xi cautioned.
