Donald Trump called Chinese President Xi Jinping “strong, vibrant, and fit” in a Truth Social post Thursday after meeting him at Joint Base Andrews, and described Xi’s wife, Peng Liyuan, as “beautiful.” The comments came during Xi’s three-day U.S. state visit.
Trump greeted Xi on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews, a welcome described as the first time since 1962 that a president had left the White House to greet a state leader there. A military flyover accompanied Xi’s arrival. Melania Trump told Fox News her husband chose the airport greeting because “they have a great relationship,” according to The Daily Beast.
Xi called for the two countries to be “partners rather than rivals” and said China’s goals and Trump’s “Make America Great Again” agenda could coexist, Xinhua reported. U.S.-China relations expert David Firestein said Trump was seeking a broader trade package, including lower Chinese tariffs on U.S. goods, increased rare-earth shipments and greater Chinese purchases of U.S. agricultural products.
