By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2024-12-12 15:58:45 | Updated at 2024-12-12 18:53:22
3 hours ago
President-elect Donald Trump invited world leaders to attend his inauguration as president in January, including Chinese President Xi Jinping, his spokeswoman confirmed on Thursday.
Incoming White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed the reports during an appearance on Fox and Friends, describing Trump's invitation to Xi as 'precedent' for the United States.
It would be unprecedented if Xi did accept the invitation and appear at Trump's inauguration.
Leavitt said Xi had not yet responded to the invitation and that his appearance was 'to be determined.'
Trump revealed Sunday on NBC's Meet the Press that he had already kicked off his diplomatic relationship with President Xi, even though he has not been sworn in as president.
'I have a very good relationship with President Xi,' he said. 'We have been communicating with each other.'
Trump and President Xi first met face to face in April 2017 he welcomed the Chinese president to his club at Mar-a-Lago. Trump also made a state visit to China in November 2017 and held multiple bilateral meetings with each other at international summits.
Trump said Sunday he remained committed to leveling tariffs on Chinese goods and other foreign countries.
U.S. President Donald Trump, left, meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping
'Tariffs are going to make our country safe because China, as an example, doesn’t want to play games with us if we’re going to do tariffs on them,' he said.
Trump has proposed tariffs on Chinese goods as high as 60 percent.
On social media last month, Trump proposed an additional 10 percent tariff on goods from China unless they acted to stop the flow of fentanyl to the United States.
Trump is adamant at getting China to stop supplying Mexican drug cartels as the primary source of chemicals used to produce fentanyl.
'I have had many talks with China about the massive amounts of drugs, in particular Fentanyl, being sent into the United States – But to no avail,' Trump wrote on social media.
China responded to the tariff threats by cautioning Trump against sparking a trade war.
'No one will win a trade war or a tariff war,' Chinese Embassy Spokesperson Liu Pengyu said in a statement describing the trade relationship between China and the United States as 'mutually beneficial in nature.'
The former and future president's tariff proposals on Mexico, Canada, and China has kick-started negotiations between their leaders, even prior to Trump taking office as president.
U.S. President Donald Trump takes part in a welcoming ceremony with China's President Xi Jinping in Beijing, China,
President-elect Donald Trump gestures after ringing the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange
Leavitt said that Trump was committed to diplomacy with all world leaders as he prepares for his second term.
'We saw this in his first term. He got a lot of criticism for it, but it led to peace around this world,' he said. 'He is willing to talk to anyone, and he will always put America’s interests first.'
Trump spent Thursday morning at the New York Stock Exchange, ringing in the bell to open the stock market and celebrate being named Person of the Year by TIME magazine.
'I think we're going to have a tremendous run,' Trump told stock traders on Thursday, admitting that there was a lot to do economically, especially on inflation issues.
