President Trump hosts President Xi for tea

President Trump and first lady Melania hosted Chinese president Xi Jinping and his wife for a tea party at the White House, featuring a Western-style menu.

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump hosted Chinese president Xi Jinping and his wife, Peng Liyuan, for an intimate Western-style tea party in the White House's Red Room on 25/9. The two presidents sat facing each other in armchairs, while their wives shared a sofa positioned between them.

The table was elegantly set with a brightly colored tea set and a two-tiered stand filled with small pastries, comprising a traditional Western tea menu. Notably, despite 25/9 marking the Mid-Autumn Festival on the lunar calendar, mooncakes were absent from the spread.

US President Trump and his wife, and Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife at the White House tea party on 25/9. *AP*

The intimate gathering in the Red Room, a first-floor reception area often used for smaller functions, was initially planned as a closed event. However, it was later opened to reporters, allowing both leaders to deliver brief remarks.

President Trump stated that he and President Xi had made significant, positive progress for both nations. He added, "American farmers will be very happy, and America is also very satisfied with this visit."

US President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping converse during a tea party at the White House on 25/9. *White House*

President Xi confirmed two additional meetings with President Trump this year: at the APEC conference in Shenzhen in November and the G20 summit in Miami in December. President Xi also extended an invitation to President Trump and Melania to visit China.

President Xi arrived in Washington D.C. on 23/9, marking the first Chinese leader's state visit to the US in 11 years. President Trump personally welcomed him at Joint Base Andrews, an unprecedented gesture for a US president greeting a foreign head of state at that facility in over 60 years.

The state dinner at the White House on 24/9 featured a menu for President Xi including yellow zucchini cream soup, sea bass, and a dessert ice cream made with honey from White House-kept bees. President Trump also gifted President Xi a bald eagle statue, a US symbol, designed with input from him and Melania.