China rolled out the red carpet Wednesday for President Donald Trump’s pomp-filled arrival in Beijing.
Students, waving Chinese and American flags, and a Chinese honor guard lined both sides of the red carpet on the tarmac of the Beijing Capital Airport as Trump disembarked Air Force One.
Trump was gifted flowers upon stepping onto the tarmac.
Eric and Lara Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Tesla CEO and former special government employee Elon Musk, and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang were seen deplaning Air Force One after the president.
Top CEOs, including Apple’s Tim Cook and many others, are joining Trump in China as part of the American delegation.
In a Truth Social post from late Tuesday night Eastern Standard Time, Trump wrote:
It is an Honor to have Jensen, Elon, Tim Apple, Larry Fink, Stephen Schwarzmann, Kelly Ortberg (Boeing), Brian Sikes (Cargill), Jane Fraser (Citi), Larry Culp (GE Aerospace), David Solomon (Goldman Sachs), Sanjay Mehrotra (Micron), Cristiano Amon (Qualcomm), and many others journeying to the Great Country of China where I will be asking President Xi, a Leader of extraordinary distinction, to “open up” China so that these brilliant people can work their magic, and help bring the People’s Republic to an even higher level!
Trump said that upon meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, his first request will be that Xi “opens up” China.
“In fact, I promise, that when we are together, which will be in a matter of hours, I will make that my very first request. I have never seen or heard of any idea that would be more beneficial to our incredible Countries!” he wrote.
Trump headed from the airport to his hotel for the evening. On Thursday morning, Beijing time, there will be an official arrival ceremony, and Trump will meet with Xi.
The president spoke to reporters on the South Lawn of the White House on Tuesday before boarding Marine One en route to China, and fielded questions for over 15 minutes. In one exchange, Breitbart News asked the president whether he believed Xi could help or contribute to a deal with Iran.
“He could. I mean, it might be. I don’t think we need any help with Iran, to be honest with you. They’re defeated militarily, and they’ll either do the right thing, or we’ll finish the job,” Trump said.