Donald Trump gave Xi Jinping a bald eagle sculpture at a Washington state dinner, saying it embodied “the free and soaring spirit of America.” Their summit sought personal ties amid AI competition and a temporary trade truce extended during the visit.
Xi announced that pandas Ping Ping and Fu Shuang would soon go to Zoo Atlanta, along with a new exchange programme to welcome 100,000 US students to study in China over five years. Trump said he and Melania helped design the eagle sculpture.
Former US diplomat Daniel Kritenbrink said personal relationships are particularly important to Xi and called gift exchanges one key part of leader-level diplomacy. Experts said such exchanges are negotiated weeks in advance. US rules set a $525 limit on gifts a president may receive from a foreign government; higher-value gifts become federal property unless bought back with personal funds. A president giving gifts above a separate threshold must go through Congress unless paying personally.
